Tell Me A Story
by shibara1310
Summary: No one told her stories the way he did. No one smiled the way she did. Zexion/Namine
1. The Princess and the Frog

Hello, hello, hello. Here's something different; Zexion and Naminè. This is one of the odd pairings, but I love it! I love Axel and Naminè more, but what the heck? Now, I am going to rate each chapter so you'll be prepared for anything. Got it memorized? Good. Secondly, you might recognize the 'last page of her sketchbook' idea. No. It is not the last page of her sketchbook. Yes, a spoiler: Later on she finds out that two pages were stuck together. I have seen so many stories about the last page of her sketchbook, but I wanted to do something different. Nyuk, nyuk. And that isn't even scarcely important with the story.

I'm not going to update that much. Let's see how this works out… There should be 20 chapters, hm…maybe. And all of the chapters will be around 2,500 words each. Good, short-ish, meh...easy-read, for sure. Tah-tah! First few chapters are cheesy. You've been warned: maybe some OOC here and there...and slight AU, but sticking to the main point of Chain of Memories.

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, Onesided: Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Square Eenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T.

Warning: May be a little OOC? I guess?

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

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Chapter One: The Princess and the Frog

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The white room was empty, all except for a table in the center, a bed off to the side and two chairs. But the room was not completely vacant of people. In fact, a small girl with a short white dress was preoccupied with her sketchbook as she sat in one of the chairs. The light shone through the window and caused highlights to create a halo on the girl's golden hair while her blue eyes brightened.

Naminè bit the eraser of her pencil as she bored her forget-me-not eyes into the blank page of her sketchbook. It was her last sheet of paper, and she wanted to use it wisely. She had no idea what to draw as she sat in silence, with no one there watching her, talking to her, or demanding her what to draw next. She had the freedom now to draw whatever she liked. And she would cherish that time while it lasted. The only problem was that she had no clue what to sketch. Maybe a horse? A dog? A happy person? Nah, too boring…she wanted to draw something different.

Perhaps something more beautiful, like a cathedral. But then again, she did not really know what a cathedral looked like, exactly. She drew Castle Oblivion, the place she was kept in, many times. It wasn't the typical fairy tale castle. Every room was white. White here, white there, white _everywhere_. It gave her a migraine. The members of the Organization XIII really contrasted against the pure color. They bore robes of black leather, and they did frighten her sometimes. Well, a few members.

Two members in particular scared her excessively. Larxene for one. Larxene would tease her about the simplest things. Sometimes she would hit her for no reason whatsoever. Or sometimes Naminè would ask a simple question and the answer was a slap across her cheek. The blonde Nobody with jade eyes was wicked and cruel. However, it was not Larxene who frightened her the most.

Marluxia. The Graceful Assassin was a different story. Well…how to put this? Let's just say that Naminè feared for her purity around him. One time it almost got too far…until Axel came in asking where his tooth brush was. Who brushed their teeth at 3 o' clock in the morning? She thanked him with her eyes, and he just shrugged while Marluxia left, slightly infuriated with the disturbance.

Ah, Axel. He and Demyx were the only Nobodies who seemed to actually care about her safety. Why Axel seemed to want to protect her from Marluxia was beyond Naminè. His scarlet hair identified his fiery temper, which wasn't a surprise. He was the Wielder of Flame. Of course he would have a short temper. He teased the blonde artist, but not in a vicious way like Larxene.

Demyx was rather different. He had a silly attitude, and unfortunately, he was not very bright. He was a wonderful musician and sometimes practiced in front of the small girl. On the first day of her arrival there, he immediately grew fond of her kindness. Though sometimes he did act like a brat. Also, he was a bit of a perv, in Naminè's opinion. He preferred to skim through magazines stolen from Axel or Luxord, who was the Gambler of Fate. He was the one who watched her most of the time at the castle, besides Axel, Larxene and Marluxia.

Naminè fluttered her long silky lashes as she held the pencil to the paper, prepared to draw the switch movements of lines that would create the image that she would create with her mind first. The problem was that she did not have any images in her mind. She chewed on her bottom lip, concentrating hard on the large piece of paper. Once she was completed with this picture, she would have to have another sketchbook, and that would mean that Marluxia would have to get it for her.

Marluxia was the one in charge of her, her drawings, her powers to manipulate other people's memories. If she didn't do what she was told to do, she would be locked in the castle forever, never to be free again. Of course she feared him for that fact. But also the fact that she was basically his prey didn't really help her bravery, either.

The sound of the door opening made her jump. She mentally prayed that it wasn't Marluxia or the Savage Nymph. According to the certain time, it should be either Axel or Demyx's turn to watch her. Luckily, it was neither of the two feared Nobodies who entered the room.

Demyx…if there was anyone goofier than him, the teen girl didn't know who. Though she appreciated his personality and spunk and didn't really mind his clumsiness. He smirked as he shoved his gloved hands deep into his pockets as the blackish,blue mist of the portal vanished into the still air.

"Hey Nami, how's the drawing coming along?" he inquired curiously as he made his way to the white chair where the girl was seated. Glimpsing over her bare shoulder, he let a tiny trace of a frown appear.

"What are you drawing?" Really, he was absolutely clueless…couldn't he see that her page was blank? Blank! Meaning, nothing! But Naminè wouldn't let her restlessness show.

"I don't know…" she whispered, feeling immediately down while she lightly touched the paper with her finger.

"How about a puppy?" Demyx suggested brightly. Keeping in a scoff, Naminè shook her head.

"I already drew that."

"Oh. Well, how about a nice, happy picture?" He made the sentence too cheerful.

"I want to draw something _different_," Naminè emphasized the last word as she bent over, clutching the sketch pad against her chest. Demyx responded by scratching his chin as he gazed up at the white ceiling. His appearance lived up as he came up with an idea.

"I know! How about you draw me with my sitar?"

Naminè sighed. Without a word she flipped through old pages of her sketch book until she reached a certain page. Turning over a certain page, she turned the sketch book towards the dirty blonde Melodious Nocturne. He frowned again.

"Oh…" he stated simply as he stared at the picture of him standing with his sitar in his grip.

"I guess you already drew that, huh?" he grinned, trying to cheer up the little witch. She nodded solemnly.

"I know! I can tell you a story and you can draw a picture for it," Demyx dragged a lonely white chair to a place in front of the girl and sat in it lazily. He tapped his chin with his index finger. Demyx was known for telling her fairy tales and old folk tales. Her favorite story that he told her was Beauty and the Beast, for it was about true love. Though he was the only one who told her stories, his explanation greatly lacked detail.

Demyx beamed when a thought crossed his mind.

"I got just the one. Once upon a time, there was a beautiful peasant girl who worked at a castle. One day, a prince saw her and-"

"You already told me that one," Naminè shyly insisted. He started, confused.

"Did I? I don't remember…okay, what was it called, then?" he challenged, leaning farther back into the chair and raising his chin up haughtily.

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarves," she dully responded.

"Oh, right…" Demyx admitted the defeat and brainstormed for another story.

"I got another one!" he exclaimed excitedly, and Naminè wondered if there was any point to this. The reason he told her stories was possibly to entertain himself. True, he often enjoyed his own storytelling. If he was not telling her a story, he was sulking in boredom.

"Yes?" But she wouldn't let him know that she was aware of that fact.

"Once upon a time-"

"Why do they always start with 'once upon a time'? Why not something more interesting?" whined the fourteen year old girl. Surprised by her outburst, Demyx blinked a few times.

"I don't know…I guess the authors didn't have much of an imagination…" Demyx thought on that for a bit before he continued.

"Anywho, once upon a time, there was a king and a queen, and they had a baby girl-"

"Sleeping Beauty," Naminè said blandly with bored eyes. Demyx paused and shook his head.

"How do you know that story? I _know_ I didn't tell you that one…"

"Marluxia did," the words came out painfully.

"He did?" Demyx looked startled, surprised, and shocked. Indeed, it was a shock for the Graceful Assassin to tell the prisoner a story. In fact, it was hardly possible. Though recently the pink haired man had tried spending more time with Naminè.

"Why?" Demyx dared to ask as he shot her a questioning expression. She shifted uncomfortably, biting her lip as she did so.

"I don't know, really…" Her mind went back to that day. It was the time before Axel barged around the castle asking for his tooth brush. Marluxia had her cornered; there was no way to escape. Even if she did, she would be punished further. He sure did pick an interesting time to tell her a romantic tale as he held her in his lap and stroked her hair. The whole situation was awkward, really, and Naminè forced herself to forget. She was truly thankful when Axel interrupted the leader of Castle Oblivion. True, it was a shame that Marluxia was practically second in command of the Organization.

"Hm, oh well, I can't think of any more stories," Demyx broke the girl out of her painful thoughts as he stood up, walking back and forth across the room.

"Can you make up one?" she asked softly, not wanting him to leave. Marluxia might return while she was alone. Whenever there was another member there, it was safer. Especially with Demyx. Demyx was stubborn and would pitch a fit if Marluxia demanded for him to leave them alone. It was rather obvious that the Melodious Nocturne really enjoyed the girl's company.

"Eh…er…" Demyx scratched his head and winced, trying hard to think of a story. His face broke into a crooked smile.

"I know! Have I told you the story of the Princess and the Frog?"

"No…" Naminè arched a blonde eyebrow, curious as to what kind of story it would be. It sounded suspicious. Who put the words 'princess' and 'frog' in the same sentence? Gleefully, Demyx sauntered over to the chair and plopped into it, getting himself ready for a tale.

"Great! Oh why did they give me this job?" Demyx mumbled to himself before he went on, which gave the girl a pang of guilt. Maybe she was wrong about him enjoying her company.

"One day, a princess was walking in the forest and spotted a tiny green tree frog on a papou tree. She picked him up, and thought he was so cute! So she kissed him, and he turned into an ugly man who captured her and made her his sex slave." Naminè blinked, wondering what horrible fantasies this man in front of her was thinking up.

"Um…what?" she stammered nervously. Casually, Demyx waved his hand.

"No worries! Before he could rape her, this peasant boy came along and saved her, cutting the dude's head off!" Demyx finished as he leaned back in his chair.

_No more asking him to make up any stories…_She thought to herself as she fidgeted nervously. It was his shortest story that he ever told her. Truthfully, she did not like it at all. Who went around, telling little girls about princesses nearly getting raped? Especially to a girl who was possibly in danger of that horrible term. It made Naminè sick to her stomach.

"Um, that's nice, I guess…" she murmured as she avoided his bright blue eyes. He sighed dramatically and the corners of his mouth turned down.

"I know, I suck at stories…"

"No, you don't. They're very…interesting." Demyx smiled at this, taking the compliment lightly. It was just like the girl to make him feel pleased with himself. She was nice, sure, but she was a little witch who had the power to mess with people's memories. Marluxia informed him that she was not to be trusted, but he couldn't help but grow fond of her. Her personality was very likeable; she just was not talkative, even to him, and he was the one who watched her most of the time.

"So…do you know when Sora is coming?" Demyx quickly changed the subject before he could go on admiring the hostage. Curiously, Naminè tilted her graceful head to the side.

"Mm, no, not really…whatever Marluxia tells me to draw next must be his memory…the last picture I drew of Sora was of him with his two companions in a field," she explained generously.

"Ah…interesting…" If only he could actually talk about something _worth_ talking about. She was bored, and even though he tried his best to come up with a conversation, he would merely ask a question that she would simply answer. End of that. Then another question…and another, and another. So, Naminè decided to ask next.

"Who's going to watch me next?"

"I think…Marluxia," Demyx cringed a little bit as he said it. She froze in response.

"No! Wait, actually it's Axel's turn now," he gave her a reassuring smile as she breathed out gently, relieved that he was mistaken. She did despise his absent mind, for sometimes he forgot who would be watching her, and if he mentioned Marluxia, she would be falsely alarmed.

"Are you leaving now?" Naminè stared at him with pleading eyes. Axel was funny and cheerful, but she actually enjoyed the sitar player's company more, maybe because he sat down and told her stories, and didn't call her mean names. Though Axel only called her those little pet names just for fun, but she still did not like it.

"Nah, though in a bit. I'm hungry, and I think there's only one doughnut left in the pantry in the kitchen… When that's gone, Axel has to cook, and I'm not too keen on eating charcoal," Demyx shot her another smile while she giggled at his joke. True, Axel was not the _best_ cook in the Organization. The one who cooked her meals was Roxas, but she never really met him before. All she knew about him was that he was Sora's Nobody. She was Kairi's Nobody. It was very interesting how Sora and Kairi loved each other and Roxas and Naminè did not. Love was a strong word.

"Seriously, you should taste his ravioli. I swear that the sauce is ash," Demyx continued complaining about Axel's ill hobby and pretended to be appalled by the remark. The artist giggled at the sight of his face.

"Eh, but it's not the pyro's fault. I mean, heck, he's the wielder of flame! Mess with him, and you'll get yourself screwed." Naminè ceased her tittering and swallowed hard. It took Demyx a moment or two to realize how wrong his statement sounded.

"Oh! I, er, um…never mind, sorry, Nami…" Demyx mumbled while he stood up and paced over to the opposite wall. Silence followed, but the witch didn't mind. She went back to staring blankly into her sketchbook, going back to wondering what to draw next.

"So…you gonna draw a scene from the story?" his sudden question made her jump.

"Um, not really…" to be honest, the story he told her was absolutely vulgar and horrible to her ears. It wasn't really his fault. The sitar player always said things that he didn't mean. Though Naminè could agree with the story a bit. She felt like the princess captured by the ugly man who prowled on her innocence. But who would be her hero?

Would Marluxia get what he wanted? Would he force it from her?

Will no one be there to stop him?

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**(A/N): **I actually liked it…though I made Demyx a pervert. Sorry about that; I love the dude to death. 

Review if you liked it! Flames will be used for Axel's enjoyment.


	2. Of Flamed Hearts

Hullo again! I'm back sooner than I thought I would be with another chapter! Now, I forgot to warn you guys that Zexion doesn't come in until chapter three, but he is mentioned in this chapter. Yay! In this chapter, we see Axel. Huzzah for the red-headed Nobody. This is another semi-intro chapter, but hopefully it isn't too boring.

Besides that, I should also warn you that, er, in later chapters it's kind of rough. I'll have a warning and rating for sure, though. Oh! And this is the shortest chapter yet in my Word program…yes, I have the whole story written out. Haha.

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, Onesided-Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T for sexual themes.

Warning: Er, mentions of stripping. Thus the name of the chapter…-cough- No worries! It's not what you think, hopefully. 

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

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Chapter Two: Of Flamed Hearts

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"Dum, duh-duh, dum, dum!" Demyx hummed cheerfully as he sat down at the table in the center of the room, flipping through a magazine. By the look of the cover, it was a magazine that wouldn't be best for Naminè to skim through. She bashfully went through her old pictures in the depths of her sketch book as the young man propped his feet on the table's surface. His face was covered with an expression of pure excitement and enjoyment, while the young girl had a frown opon her rosy lips. It had been two hours since Demyx's arrival and she was still wondering what would be interesting enough to draw.

"Der, der, der! Dum, dum, dum!" And his humming was exceedingly annoying. Naminè struggled not to roll her blue orbs and succeeded. Even though it was annoying, it was yet…enjoyable in an odd, strange sort of way.

"What are you humming?" Naminè asked sweetly as she lifted her gaze up to his figure. Tearing his eyes from the…interesting magazine, Demyx smirked.

"Just a song I wrote so I could play it on the sitar," he answered, returning to his previous distraction. Apparently he was extremely interested in the magazine, especially the outer cover. Wincing, the girl drew her attention back to flipping through her pictures.

"It sounds pretty," she shyly admitted as she came across a picture of Roxas and Axel smiling together. Demyx tone was off key a few octaves, but the tune itself was rather nice.

"Thanks," Demyx replied, still staring at the pages littered with…well, we'll just say 'things'. Interestingly enough, he never did leave to retrieve his precious doughnut. Ever since he picked up the magazine a few hours ago, he didn't say a word, until Naminè's interruption. His entire mind was directly on the mag.

It was a known fact that Demyx was fond of pornography. Naminè was not…unaware of this, but yet she did not want him to know that she knew another one of his 'bad habits', as Axel would call it. Demyx had other habits that she knew of, but we won't talk about that now. The artist closed her sketch book and stared at it, before flipping it back open to the blank page.

Naminè sighed, absolutely bored with the current situation.

Suddenly, a portal appeared, the black and deep indigo swirls of mist circling around the dark gateway. A cloaked figure stepped out with the hood over his eyes, concealing his identity. Naminè shivered as she avoided his gaze, fearing who it may be. But as he removed his hood, she felt her breathing continue when she caught the glimpse of red hair.

"Demyx, aren't you too young to be going through that mag?" Axel jeered as he crossed his arms over his broad chest and sauntered over to Demyx, orbs still glued to the obscure pictures. Snatching it out of his hands, Axel shook his head while the Melodious Nocturne protested. Kiddingly, Axel shoved Demyx's feet off the table's surface and the younger Nobody jumped out of his seat, trying to pry the magazine out of the inferno's hands.

"Hey, come on! Give it back!" he yelped in a whiny tone that made Naminè arch an eyebrow.

"Nuh-uh. This is Luxord's. You have no right to take it from his room when he's still suffering from that _horrible_ hangover," Axel stated in false compassion as he looked at the closed magazine with interest and pushed the younger Nobody away with his other hand. Naminè couldn't help but giggle at the scene of the two men fighting over the adult-themed magazine. Axel heard the quiet, soft titter of the girl sitting alone on the other side of the room. His countenance brightened when he looked over at her.

"Oh, hey, Nami! Demyx hasn't been telling you R rated stories, has he? You're a naughty boy, aren't you?" Axel pinched Demyx's cheek. Demyx swiped away his hand and scowled. Axel chuckled as he tucked the magazine inside his cloak and took out an object wrapped with a napkin. Casually glancing over at Naminè, Axel walked over to her chair.

"Here, kid, I got you something to eat," Axel bent down to Naminè's eye level and handed her the gift. Cautiously, she accepted it and placed it on her lap as she set her sketchbook on the cold floor. Axel frowned as he caught a sight of the blank page. Of course, he was confused. Usually the girl always scribbled away, always coloring. Always. So it came as a surprise to him that the little artist actually had a blank page with nothing, not one pencil stroke, drawn on it.

Naminè unwrapped the white napkin to reveal the last doughnut in the kitchen. It was golden brown with chocolate glazed over the top, sprinkled with red and white colored sugar. Beaming up at the pyro, she nodded in appreciation as she stared into his warm emerald eyes.

"Hey, that was my doughnut!" Demyx's whining voice broke the silence while he stood behind Axel and looked over his shoulder at the wanted treat. Axel rolled his eyes as he wheeled around and hit Demyx on his forehead.

"Ow!"

"Stop being a dumbass. Poor Naminè hasn't eaten anything since yesterday. Ladies first," Axel smirked as he tossed the girl a quick wink. She blushed as she went back to staring at the doughnut.

"Besides, Larxene was about to have it. But she would throw it up later anyway," Axel continued as he grabbed Demyx by the drawstring of his hood. Growling silently, the blonde Nobody tried to claw Axel's hands, but made no prevail.

"Now, go through the kitchen and see if you can find anything else worth eating. I don't want to cook barbeque tonight," Axel released his grip and tossed Demyx to the side. Grudgingly, Demyx summoned a portal and allowed himself to be swallowed in the black and purple swirls of mist. Through the dark smoky substance, his piercing glare was seen.

"Pssh, men," Axel snorted half heartedly and rested his hands on his hips. Naminè stared at Axel with wide eyes as a few seconds passed. With a coy smile he glanced back at her.

"So, kid, what are you drawing?" he beckoned at the sketch book lying on the white, marble floor. Naminè let out a sad sigh and stared at her white hands cradling the prized doughnut.

"Nothing, really…" Axel let out a 'hmph' and stepped backwards a few steps.

"What do you want to draw?" he inquired cautiously. Naminè bowed her head pitifully.

"I don't know…" she whispered ruefully.

"Well, draw anyone or anything you want! Except Marluxia. I can't stand to look at him today…" Axel grumbled under his breath. This sparked Naminè's interest. It was not unusual that Axel despised the Graceful Assassin. He hated the man, calling him names that Naminè wouldn't dare repeat and pulled jokes on him. Not the humorous sort of jokes that anyone would laugh at, either. Naminè was not at all the least bit surprised at the fiery man's statement.

"Why?" she asked innocently. Axel casually tilted his head to the side, remaining silent as he thought of what to say.

The reason for Axel's grudge against Marluxia would remain unknown to the little artist. It had just happened last night, while the whole Organization members held a small party. Well, not particularly _small_. Luxord had insisted that a few members would play a card game. The members who accepted the deal was Axel, Marluxia, Luxord himself, Demyx, and Xigbar.

Unfortunately, Marluxia just _had _to bring up an idea for what the loser had to do if they lost the poker game. The loser had to stand on the table, singing an awkward song as he stripped down to his underwear. Axel was very confident that he wouldn't lose, so he agreed to go along with the deal.

So they played. Luxord won, as usual, Demyx barely got by second, and Xigbar was third. The last two were Marluxia and Axel. To his dismay, Axel had one pair and Marluxia won by two pairs. Of course, that meant that Axel was naturally the loser.

It was absolutely embarrassing for him to strip off his clothes in front of the rest of the men, especially since most of the members weren't exactly straight. The most embarrassing moment, however, was possibly the part when he revealed his boxers: flaming hearts. After that, he received a couple of whistles and he threatened to burn down the whole place, and any survivors he would hunt down and torture them, before burning them to death.

Axel had to come up with an explanation for the young girl sitting in the chair, staring at him curiously with azure eyes. He never did like to pollute her mind with…well, certain things that would be best for a fourteen year old not to know. Nervously, he scratched the back of his head while he shrugged.

"Oh, I just lost a bet with him. Nothing serious!" he switched the subject back to her drawing.

"Do you know what you want to draw?" Axel smiled mischievously at her. Bluntly, she shook her head so that her blonde hair was covering part of her face. He winced at her reply and tapped his chin as he thought; just as Demyx did…Naminè could predict what would come out of his mouth next.

"So, I could pose for you, if you want," he smirked. Naminè blinked, picking up her sketch book and turning it to a certain page before turning it to the inferno.

"Ah…" was his response. There Axel was, standing in what he liked the call, his 'sexy' pose. He kept on complaining on how his hair just wasn't right in the girl's drawing. Finally he shut up when she had shot him a glare.

"Well…draw someone else, then!" Axel suggested, slightly impatient.

"I've drawn almost everyone," Naminè scowled, slightly frustrated. Her patience was running short, just like the man standing beside her.

"Well, _almost everyone_ isn't _everyone_. Who have you drawn so far?" the red headed Nobody demanded silkily. Naminè skimmed through the pages one by one, staring at a few of them because they weren't the best. Looking back up at the questioning man, she answered.

"You, Demyx, Xemnas, Lexeaus, Xigbar, Xaldin, Larxene, Saïx, Luxord, and Roxas," she blinked a few times as Axel rubbed his chin.

"How about you draw Vexen?" he suggested much too cheerful. Naminè shook her head for the umpteenth time that day.

"He scares me," she mumbled as she clutched onto her precious sketch pad. Her sketch pad was her treasure, holding her old pictures and even some of her own memories. Sora's memories were posted up on the white walls as if it was an art gallery. She didn't like it one bit. It was his memories, and he had a right to keep them.

"Oh?" Axel's voice took her out of her reverie.

"Yeah," Naminè sharply replied. She didn't like the tone in his voice, but she wouldn't admit to that. She just did not prefer drawing the mad scientist.

"Why?" Axel asked with a confused expression in his jade eyes. Honestly, the teenager personally did not care to explain her comfort zone. Vexen was the Organization's scientist who observed the heart and its powers. For some odd reason, he had an interest in Naminè because she had the power to manipulate memories.

"He experiments on me. And he smells funny," Naminè murmured to herself as she bashfully went back to picking at her doughnut with her fingernails. Carefully, she took a delicate bite from it. To her surprise, Axel threw back his head and laughed, which nearly made her choke.

"Um…what's so funny?" she swallowed coarsely.

"You," Axel paused from his laughing fit and waved his hand carelessly at her. A small spark erupted in the back of the girl's mind. She didn't really appreciate being made fun of, nor laughed at. Of course his laughing bothered her a great deal. She clenched her teeth together and sniffed.

"Uh, why?" she drawled with a dangerous hint to her voice.

"Because. Vexen always smells funny to us, too. Poor Zexion…he has to work in the lab with him sometimes and everyone knows what a hell of a nose that kid has," Axel sniggered and brought his hand to his mouth. Naminè shot him an inquiring glare. It took a moment for him to realize the cause behind her expression.

"Oh, you never met Zexion, have you?" Axel tapped his foot against the hard floor. Naminè shook her head and smiled softly.

"No wonder. He always stays in his library with his gifted nose stuck in his physics books. He's a genius, but pretty much emo. So, what do you want to draw?" Axel went back to the subject once again.

"I don't know!" Naminè exclaimed loudly. Furrowing her eyebrows, she glanced at the other Nobody and scrunched her face. Axel sighed, leaning against one of the white columns in the room.

"Well, draw yourself," Axel simpered and closed his eyes.

"What?" the girl stared at the man listlessly. He merely shrugged.

"I said, 'draw yourself'. It can't be too hard, can it?" Axel opened his eyes and smirked.

"No, but that's too boring."

"What do you mean?"

"_I'm _too boring. All I do is scribble pictures, tear apart people's memories, rarely talk to anyone and cause people to lose their precious doughnuts. I'm just boring."

"You're not boring. You're more interesting than Zexion, that's for sure…" Axel grumbled.

"What do you mean?"

"Never you mind. I need to see if Demyx is doing his job…Should I send up someone to watch you? Just in case, you know?" He gave her a meaningfully look, telling her that he knew that she was afraid of being alone. Shyly, she nodded.

"Yes, please…"

"All right! Don't drive the man crazy, whoever I send up."

Naminè giggled, covering her mouth with her free hand before taking another bite of the doughnut. Satisfied with her answer, Axel winked at her again before disappearing into the portal.

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**(A/N): **My, my, Demyx is a little pervert, ain't he? So is Axel, but ah well. Now, I wonder who Axel is going to send up? Hmm? I wonder? Pssh, you can take the hint, and wait for the next chapter, where we see Zexion. Huzzah! Now, flames will be used for Axel to play with. Cheerio! 


	3. The Scent of Sweet Innocence

Finally! Zexion makes an appearance. Huzzah. I'm quite relieved that we made it to chapter three. In this chapter, it's what I think Zexion and Naminè's meeting should be like. And my point it, we don't ever see them talk to each other. So we don't know what Zexion really thinks of Naminè…well, that's what I got from Re: Chain of Memoires. I had to do a lot of research, and I hope it was worth it. Another thing is, Zexion _may _be out of character. I made him nicer. No offense; I love him to death. But you get my drift...

Enough of my blabbering!

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, (onesided)Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **K plus to T.

Warnings: Mentions of alcohol.

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

**-x-x-x-**

Chapter Three: Scent of Sweet Innocence

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Turning a thin page over, Zexion inhaled deeply and stifled a yawn. The book he was reading was a book on the complicity of chemistry. Vexen had assigned him the 14,387 page book last night, and he was already halfway through it. Even though he was an intelligent bookworm/geek known to the Organization, Zexion found some of the book rather…dull. It was as if the author had no interest in how fascinating chemistry really was. Not to mention that the atom diagram was poorly mapped.

While the rest of the Organization had partied and gambled the night before, Zexion sat in a corner, too interested in his book than hanging out with the rest of the 'gang'. Though he did get to see Axel lose the bet in poker. The others were too wasted to remember what happened the previous night. It was not in the Cloaked Schemer's interest to drink alcohol or play a hand at cards with Luxord.

Zexion shifted in the chair at the desk in the library. The room was dark, and it would come to a surprise for anyone that he was able to read without much light, but he was. That day was quiet, just to his liking. But he did enjoy some days when something out of the ordinary happened. For example, the night before…enough said. The day before that, Larxene and Axel had a full fledge fight because the Wielder of Flame had commented on her and Marluxia spending the night together.

It was true, though. Larxene and Marluxia seemed to have a relationship together that they wanted to be kept secret. If only Marluxia knew about Larxene's other relationships…Zexion kept himself from letting out a dry humored laugh. Personally he wouldn't care if the Savage Nymph was killed that day. He wouldn't miss her.

Zexion arched an eyebrow as he sniffed the still air once, catching the familiar scent of someone in particular. He began to count the seconds when the certain person would arrive. A portal appearing in the dark room didn't even faze the nineteen year old Nobody as he flipped over another page. Axel glared at the other when he didn't greet him. Huffing out loud, Axel went straight to the point of his arrival.

"I need you to watch Naminè."

Slowly, Zexion raised his gaze up with false pain in his steel blue orbs.

"Don't I get a hello?" he replied with a heavy coat of sarcasm. Rolling his eyes, Axel crossed his arms as he walked over to the oak desk where Zexion resided at. Expectedly, Zexion arched his eyebrows and glowered at the taller man.

"Hello, Zexy. Now, I need you to watch Naminè," Axel shot him a withering glare. This was what Zexion didn't really admire about Axel…he always demanded. Why wouldn't he ask once in awhile? And Zexion wasn't too keen on babysitting a little witch whom he never met. He went back to staring at his book.

"No," he curtly responded, deciding to make Axel lose his short temper with him. Come to think about it, Zexion _never_ did like Axel, either. Despite his cheerful, friendly attitude, he was too…outgoing. In other words, he was basically the opposite of Zexion.

"_Excuse_ me?" Axel demanded, infuriated with clenched fist by his sides. Zexion shrugged and sighed impatiently.

"I believe I stated the word 'no'," Zexion almost scoffed, but contained the urge to do so.

"Why?"

"I said 'no' because I simply refuse."

"That's what I asked! Why the hell not?" Axel was shaking now, extremely agitated by the so called 'genius'. This time, Zexion allowed a small smirk to appear.

"I am reading."

"Reading what?" Axel growled as he shot the Cloaked Schemer a piercing glare.

"A book."

"Haha, I laugh at you, smartass, but my point is you_ will_ watch Naminè, or I'll have Vexen do ungodly experiments on you _and_ I'll burn all of your precious books. Got it memorized?" Zexion lifted his orbs up to meet Axel's gaze again. So now he was going over the choices in his already busy mind. Either watch the little witch, or have Vexen do God knows what to him and Axel burn his library…he weighed the chances.

"Why do I have to watch her?" Zexion drawled in a dangerous, cool tone. Cringing, Axel's face changed from pained to relaxed in a split second, which caught Number Six's attention.

"First of all, you need to have your fair share of watching her. Demyx and I watch her most of the time, and we decided to make a change of that plan…and you can watch her at this time from now on, since you're so looking forward to," Axel grinned at him while Zexion's face fell.

"Also, she needs someone to watch her, and there's no one else, except Marluxia, but…well, you're a better choice." Zexion scowled at that remark.

"Lastly, I'm too busy these days, or I would watch her. Do you understand, Zexion?" Axel snapped and tapped his foot against the hard floor. Feeling his jaw tighten, Zexion closed his eyes and breathed out long and steadily before snapping his eyes back open.

"Fine," Zexion sneered. Axel started, surprised at how easy it was to convince him.

"Really?"

"No. Really." Now Axel was confused. He ran his gloved fingers through his scarlet hair as he thought on Zexion's statement. Sighing in frustration, Zexion slammed his book shut and stood up.

"When do I have to watch the witch?" he asked with a bitter edge to his voice. Axel waved his hand nonchalantly.

"Now, in fact."

"And I wasn't warned because…?" Zexion glowered warningly at the inferno. He _really_ didn't like him now.

"Last minute detail," Axel smiled as he patted the shorter Nobody's shoulder.

"It better be worth it…" Zexion murmured as he placed his book under his arm and opened a portal nearby, almost stepping through it, but was stopped by the red head tugging at the edge of his sleeve. Zexion almost snarled, but halted himself when he saw the indifferent expression on Axel's face.

"Hey, just watch her for thirty minutes at least. If you don't mind it, could you watch her longer? She's scared of being alone," Axel let his concern obvious in his serious voice. Confused at the rare tone in his voice, Zexion raised his eyebrows before nodding once and stepping into the black mist.

**-x-x-x-**

Naminè hummed sweetly as she looked around the empty room. Truthfully, she was trying to distract herself from the fear that was creeping up in her soul. The more she hummed, the less she was afraid. Yes, she was afraid that he would come and do something worse. She didn't know why he hunted her, why he threatened her and such. She was a prisoner, nothing more. So why? She was only fourteen and young…and _fresh_. She supposed that was one of the reasons…

Fiddling with the sketch pencil in her hand, along with the kneaded eraser, Naminè drew in a sharp intake of breath as she brainstormed once again for a subject to draw. Maybe she should draw herself…she always drew true events that happened. But the more she thought about, she just couldn't drive the horrible flash backs of the event that had happened to her. It was the first time she was touched like that, and she did not like it at all. It was forced from her…she had squirmed in the man's grasp, gasping every time he touched her at an uncomfortable place. He pressed his lips against her ear and told her that story…the whole time while she was sitting in his lap. Finally Axel had come in, saving her from being tortured further.

Naminè nearly jumped with fright as a portal appeared and interrupted her unpleasant thoughts. From Axel's words of comfort, she was sure that it wasn't Marluxia, but she was curious as to who it was in particular.

A short man…well, not really short. Just shorter than the others. The black mist faded around him, and she could see that he clutched onto a book. When she saw the item in his hands, she suspected who it might be. His blue-grey hair was very interesting…his long bangs covered the right side of his face, but the rest of it was short and ruffled up a bit. The one thing that stood out the most, however, was the bland, emotionless expression fixed on his face. Without a word, he made his way to the chair in front of her and sat down, opening his book as he did so.

Naminè blinked, still examining his appearance. He looked really young; his age probably ranging from eighteen to twenty. Younger than the rest of the Organization members except for Roxas, that's for sure. She smiled at him, even though his eyes were glued to the book.

"What's your name?" Naminè asked quietly. He started, snapping his gaze up to meet hers. For a moment, he stared at her, and then went back to reading his book.

"Zexion."

"Oh, I thought so," Naminè grinned again when he glanced at her. Confusion was written across his face.

"Hm?"

"Axel told me that you like to read. What are you reading now?" Naminè inquired with curiosity. Zexion blinked once.

"A book," he stated blankly.

"I can see that. What kind of book?" Naminè tittered a little from his sarcasm. This caused him to raise an eyebrow.

"Chemistry." Naminè scrunched up her face in disgust.

"That's boring. Vexen tried explaining that to me. I fell asleep," she simpered at him before switching her gaze down to her sketch book. Amazed by her bold statement, Zexion continued staring at the blonde girl. True, that book was boring, but the subject itself was fascinating.

"It's critically important in our lives. It's the chemical makeup of molecules and atoms that build up the important structures in our world," Zexion said bluntly as he placed the book in his lap. Tilting her head to the side, Naminè glanced back up at the Cloaked Schemer.

"Uh, what?" she looked flabbergasted as Zexion sighed, thinking that this was harder than he thought. He went through the back of his mind to try to come up with something simple so that the fourteen year old could understand better.

"It's about atoms and other functions," he strained himself to not go into a fully fledged conversation about the chemical makeup and other factors.

"Oh…that's still confusing," Naminè cringed before breaking into another kind smile. Zexion continued staring at her through his bangs as she went back to looking at the blank piece of paper in her sketchpad. She really wasn't as bad as he thought her to be. Larxene had told him that she looked innocent, but she was a bitch and deserved to die, or worse. But then again, why should he trust her?

Larxene had him backed into a corner, but he managed to escape by disappearing into a portal. He shuddered at that thought; Larxene liked the idea of owning every man in the Organization, since she was the only female member, besides Naminè. Funny that the Nymph didn't see Naminè as a threat.

"Do you want a doughnut?"

Zexion snapped back to reality as Naminè handed him half of a doughnut. He could tell that it was broken in half, instead of eaten on. Naminè gave him a reassuring smile once again and held out the doughnut closer to him. He shook his head bluntly.

"No, thank you." Naminè drew back her hand and allowed a disappointed frown to show. Sighing loudly, Zexion tapped the cover of the chemistry book with his fingernails.

"I don't eat sugar," he explained forcibly. Naminè's face livened again.

"I don't usually eat sugar, either. But I ate half of it in front of Axel because I didn't want him to feel bad. I wish I could have a ham sandwich instead…"

Zexion nodded in understanding and turned a page in his book. They remained in silence for a few minutes before Naminè spoke up again.

"Can you tell me a story?" Zexion looked up at her in disbelief. His sapphire eyes were wide in shock. The small girl fidgeted uncomfortably in her seat.

"I like stories…if that's all right with you…but Demyx told me every single one of them!" Naminè exclaimed as she draped her arms over her breast. Zexion cocked his head to the side and tapped his nose with his free hand.

"What kind of stories do you like?" he questioned with a quiet tone.

"Fantasy, romance, and horror!" Naminè beamed as she clutched her sketchbook close to her small figure. The short Nobody couldn't help but think her action as 'cute'.

"Have you heard of 'Beauty and the Beast'?" Zexion cocked an eyebrow and traced the engraved title on the book cover.

"Yeah. Can you make up one? But…something without any sexual content. I think Demyx's story of the Princess and the Frog scarred me for life," Naminè grumbled and dropped her azure eyes to the floor. Zexion swallowed hard and shut his book with a loud 'thwump'.

It was at this point when Zexion noticed his distraction. True, he was distracted all this time, but he didn't know why. But now he did. Because of his super-smell senses, he could recognize a person by their scent. Once he had stepped into the white room, the aroma of sugary-sweetness bothered him, giving him a headache as if he had too much caffeine. Naminè had the scent of wildflowers, which he was allergic to. No, he was not too fond of it, but for some awkward reason, it caused him to stare at her.

He was not blown away by her innocent beauty. He was not like that at all. It was her personality that was different. She laughed at his dry-humored remarks, and she seemed interested in his reading. No other person was like that. She was...different. Yet again, she was a witch, so she could be tricking him.

"Let's see…how about I write down a short story and read it out to you next time?" he asked with a soft touch to his voice. Naminè bit her lip and nodded, letting blonde tendrils of her hair cover her eyes. Truthfully, he was trying to weasel his way out of telling her a story at that moment. He was not in the mood that day.

Another portal appeared in the middle of the room beside the table, and Naminè broke her gaze with Zexion, cautiously watching the black and purple smoke evaporate, revealing Marluxia with a smirk on his face. Zexion glared at him with another one of his blank expressions.

"Hullo, Marluxia. Come to watch her?" Zexion questioned in monotone. Marluxia sighed dramatically and placed his hands on his hips.

"What are you doing? Shouldn't you be studying in the library with Vexen?" Zexion's jaw tightened when he noticed Naminè stiffened. But he was unaware of her fear.

"Yes, I should. My thirty minutes are up anyway. Will you be watching her now?" he tried to ask again. Marluxia let a smug smile spread across his face.

"Yes, I will. But you do not have the rank of asking me whether I will be keeping an eye on the witch or not. I'm in charge of Naminè, not you. Understand, Number Six?" Marluxia demanded sharply. Zexion nodded. Naminè shivered as she watched Zexion stand up from his chair and saunter off towards Marluxia and open a portal for himself.

"Zexion?" Naminè quipped in a shaking voice. Turning around, Zexion faced her.

"I'll be waiting for that story," she said, with a quirk of a small smile. Zexion nodded again, stepping into the portal and leaving the teenager with Marluxia.

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**(A/N):** Holy crap, I am not looking forward to the fourth chapter. Hint; er, Naminè and Marluxia alone together? Yes…Don't worry; I'll warn you about it. Now, we see the first little catch phrase: Tell me a story. But we see that later on, too. I always like having some connection with the title and the plot. Now, you may be thinking 'Hey, that was too easy...Zexion wouldn't write her a story, or tell her one!' Eh, maybe...but I was too lazy to spread this part of the story out. XD Yeah, ran out of ideas. It's a flaw, but hopefully not a big one. And I told you Zexion may be out of character!

Phew, long author's note…please review! I love reviews.


	4. I Can Feel

Ugh, I've dreaded this chapter, and here we are…Now, I will say this: Every four chapters, there will be some Marluxia/Namine interaction. Get it? I hope you do. I can explain it more in a review reply or something. I want to thank my reviewers, and I hope you guys like this story, despite its cheesiness. In this chapter, Marluxia tries to hit on Namine. There, I summed it up in a sentence. Zexion's too nice to her, I think…but oh well. We'll see. Zexion may be out of character. There's a bit of Zexion/Namine fluffiness, but not too much.

**_Note_**: I went over the first couple of chapters and noticed Zexion being out of character. Like, a lot. He's supposed to be like...a schemer. Thus, the name 'Cloaked Schemer'. So I tried making him more in character in later on chapters. If you notice a change, then I guess that's good? I dunno...but still. And this isn't a 'fluffy' story, because that's the last word I'd label Zexion with. 'Fluffy'...'romantic'...but there are some chapters where Zexion and Namine spend a lot of time with each other. Well, just tell me what you think. XD

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, One-sided: Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T

Warnings: Moderate sexual content and language.

_Skim ahead if you don't like Marluxia/Namine implied stuff. You won't miss anything. XD_

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

**-x-x-x-**

Chapter Four: I Can Feel

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Huffing out loud, Zexion paced down the long corridor towards the castle's large kitchen. But food wasn't on his mind, yet he would look for a ham sandwich for the prisoner. She sounded as if she was hungry, despite her meal of half of a doughnut. But why would he care? She was just a prisoner. She was nothing to him. But why did he feel as if he should make her a sandwich? That was too nice of him, no, of course he shouldn't succeed in the act of kindness. That wasn't like him. But then…that fear he saw. The one main thing on his mind now was the fear in her glistening crystal blue eyes.

She seemed…afraid of Marluxia. And then there was Axel's plead to stay with her because she was afraid of being alone. Zexion wasn't stupid; there was something mysterious about the whole ordeal. Marluxia smelled suspicious to him, but he always did, even before little Naminè came. Maybe it was that Larxene was not satisfying his needs recently and he wanted to…no, that was too horrible to even imagine. Zexion scowled at himself.

Zexion opened his book to the page that he bookmarked with a black ribbon. Stopping in the middle of the hall, he leaned against the wall with one of his feet propped up against it. He had to get his mind off of Naminè, not worry about her. But why would he worry about her? Why did he care? Zexion began to shake the thoughts out of his mind back to the kitchen. He would possibly go to the kitchen a little later, once the other members were out of it. He hated crowds. Ah, speaking of which…

Axel was happily munching on a blueberry muffin, and in his other hand was a cookies and crème caramel chocolate chip milkshake with whipped chocolate cream and cherries that he managed to create in the midst of the busy members. He didn't notice his short friend leaning against the wall with his nose stuck in a book, sneakily watching him as he walked. It was until he passed him when he finally acknowledged him.

"Tsk, you're horrible at saying greetings," Zexion murmured softly as he flipped a page to a diagram of an atom. Axel immediately halted and choked on the remains of the muffin and clutched at his throat. Zexion arched an eyebrow as he watched the fiery man trying to breathe with slight amusement. With a punch on his chest, Axel whirled toward the other Nobody.

"Why the hell are you out here?! Aren't you supposed to be watching Nami?" Axel cried out in a hoarse voice which he resolved by taking a swig of his milkshake. Amazingly, he managed to gulp down the contents of the milky drink. Zexion simply shrugged.

"Marluxia told me that he would watch her."

Zexion wasn't absolutely sure what happened next. The next thing he was experiencing was being pinned against the wall with Axel grabbing onto the front of his cloak and his precious book was lying helplessly open on the pure white floor. The remains of the once-perfect milkshake were splattered across the marble. Glistening in the bright light of the hallway with the fashion of pure glory, the mushy remnants of ice cream and sugary treats were ruined forever.

"_What?!_" Axel growled ferociously with flames dancing in his jaded eyes. Containing a mordant remark that so longed to escape his lips, Zexion retained himself and let out a sigh.

"I said that Marluxia is watching her now," he repeated his words more simply. Axel gritted his teeth before yanking Zexion along with him, dragging him across the floor as he paced quickly down the corridor. This was when he thought: maybe it was best if he stayed with the witch after all. Perhaps his suspicions about the Graceful Assassin were correct. That would mean, though, that Naminè was in danger. But what would he do to her?

"I swear, I am going to burn all of your books, chop you up with my chakras, and then burn those pieces _after_ I cut off your manhood and boil it in gasoline and feed it to Xaldin! _If_ you're alive after that, I'll cage you up with Larxene and Xemnas and have them gang rape you!" Axel boomed, interrupting Zexion's thoughts as he threw him on the floor in front of him. Zexion landed with a 'thud', balancing himself on his hands and knees and rubbing his sprained wrist.

"Wh-what ever is the trouble?" the victim of Axel's outrage blinked rapidly, trying to gather his shaken thoughts. Axel made fists and summoned fire to engulf his hands as he glared at the fellow Nobody.

"_You._ How _dare_ you leave Nami to that bastard? When I said don't leave her alone, I _meant_ it! Now, if you don't move your ass, I _will _burn down the whole library in this castle, _and_ back at the World That Never Was!" Axel glowered at him with piercing orbs and growled viciously. Taking that sign as a warning, Zexion scrambled back on his feet and wiped the front of his leather cloak.

"I just don't completely comprehend the idea of this. What is the matter?" Zexion demanded with a short scoff as he crossed his arms.

"You're an idiot, aren't you? Aren't you aware? Isn't it obvious enough for a smart genius such as yourself?" Axel scornfully replied with the bitterness weaved in his voice.

Obvious for Zexion? Well, that was a first…usually Zexion was the first to smell something, first to know something, and the first…well, always. Taken aback momentarily, the blue haired man broke eye contact with the inferno and thought hard. Could it be that Marluxia _was_ truly stalking the young witch? If that was so, well, then they would have to try to stop it, of course. But Marluxia was the head of the castle, so whatever he says goes, right? Axel's behavior was suspicious…he seemed eager ruining Marluxia's chances, and Zexion could see clearly that it was probably for a good cause, but still…Did Axel truly want to help Naminè? Why should Zexion care about the girl's honor? There was something that told him to help. He drew in an intake of a breath and nodded once.

"Good. You're coming with me," Axel let the fire on his fists die down as he grabbed Zexion by the drawstrings of his cloak and pulled him along with him.

**-x-x-x-**

Naminè was trembling.

She always frightened when the Graceful Assassin entered her white room. She didn't mind it so much when there were others in the room with her, but when she was alone…it was a nightmare; the nightmare most girls feared what would happened to them if such a situation like this ever occurred to him. Unintentionally, Naminè stiffened, her fingers clenched around the edges of her sketchpad, her knuckles whiter than her pale skin.

Marluxia had been watching the portal evaporate ever since Zexion had sauntered into the portal of darkness. Once the last threads of the dark gateway vanished, Marluxia pivoted on his heel and glowered at Naminè with a look of hunger etched in his icy blue eyes which had seem to darken a shade. As he began to approach, Naminè shrank in her chair, holding up her sketchpad taut to her chest, so least of her was being feasted on by his cold eyes.

"Now, now, my pet," the Graceful Assassin crooned, briskly and fluidly walking over to her, until he towered over her.

"No need for shyness." He wrenched the sketchpad from her hands and threw it to the ground. Swiftly, he grabbed her wrists when she dove to retrieve her beloved sketchbook. Forcibly, and without much effort, Marluxia yanked her upwards and she collided into his chest.

"Now, we left off somewhere the day before yesterday and I had not the time to come back to visit you." Naminè let out a soft whimper as Marluxia shifted a bit and sat himself down in her chair and pulled her to him. She was now sitting in his lap and Marluxia had her very close to him, burying his face in her blond hair. The hand wrapped around her waist was roaming around her stomach, and Naminè squirmed, trying to give him the hint to stop. Unfortunate for her, Marluxia did not stop, rather started moving his hand in a further radius, which caused Naminè to gasp and squirm even more.

"Stop struggling," Marluxia growled softly, his lips upon the nape of her neck now. "You'll enjoy this sooner or later. I promise you that." Then, he bit down where her neck met her shoulder and Naminè let out a small cry. Marluxia began to suck upon her skin, slightly moaning from the taste of it. He was really enjoying himself, for he wasn't able to get this far the last time.

"Let…go!" Naminè shouted, finally breaking free from Marluxia's grasp and ran into a corner. It was not the best place to go for he just promptly rose from the chair and, again, approached her. Naminè whimpered, pressing herself further into the corner. Marluxia chuckled slightly, propping his hands against the wall, securing her in and bent down low to her level.

"That was not a wise thing to do," he teased, drawing more closely to the little artist until there was hardly any space between them.

"No place to run," he simpered and was just about to ravish her mouth and neck when suddenly…

"Hey, have you seen my underwear?" Axel's voice carried across the room as he appeared in the room with Zexion standing beside him, probably because Axel was still clutching onto the shorter Nobody's drawstrings. The black mist evaporated quickly and Marluxia craned his neck toward them, groaning silently to himself. Naminè sprinted under his arm and rushed over to Zexion, hiding behind him as Axel stepped forward. The confusion was clear in the Cloaked Schemer's face as he watched Axel scratch the back of his neck as he walked towards Marluxia, who backed away from the wall.

"Excuse me?" Marluxia asked, equally confused. Axel sniffed and wrapped his arms around his own waist.

"Somebody stole my favorite pair of underwear, you know, the flaming hearts one? Ever since last night, the rest of the members have been grabbing me. Now my boxers are gone. Can you help me look for them?" Axel begged with fake sadness plastered across his face. Marluxia rolled his eyes.

Naminè grabbed onto the back of Zexion's leather cloak, remaining ever so close to him and shaking in fear. Zexion frowned, for this confirmed his theory. The girl was trembling so violently, he could feel her shaking. He turned around to face the little witch and felt a pang of pity when he noticed her crying silently. As the two other men argued over random things, which was Axel's intention, Zexion crouched down to eye level with the girl. She seemed to feel his eyes on her.

She met his gaze and caught her breath in her throat, causing her to break into a sob. Biting his lip, Zexion never really had been in a situation like this, trying to calm a crying girl. So he did the best thing he thought possible.

"Do you want that ham sandwich?" he inquired monotone as ever. Naminè quickly nodded her head. Zexion let a sigh escape.

"All right. Let's go," he opened a portal and held her hand as they both disappeared, leaving the two men continuing to bicker amongst themselves. The next thing Naminè knew was appearing in the kitchen, hanging onto the front of Zexion's cloak. Her tears were beginning to dry on her blushed cheeks as she stepped away from Number Six. Naminè sniffed and then let out a shuddering breath as she glanced around the large white kitchen.

She had been there once with Axel when he was giving her a tour of the castle, but she couldn't remember it that well. It was huge, that was for sure. Bordering the walls were countertops, pantries and cabinets. Everything was the same color, even the refrigerator and the stove and oven. Whirling around, she found Zexion already making a sandwich at the white countertop/island in the middle of the room. Fluttering her long eyelashes, Naminè made her way to stand beside his right elbow and watch him putting the pieces of the sandwich together.

"Do you like mayonnaise or mustard with your sandwich?" Zexion asked patiently, having the knife at ready with the two open jars of the latter. Smiling despite her sadness, Naminè pointed at the yellow container of mustard. Bobbing his head, Zexion stuck the knife in the container and scooped out a good amount of the spicy sauce. Finishing it up, he handed her the sandwich wrapped in a napkin.

Gladly, Naminè accepted the food and sat down on a nearby bar stool. As she ate in silence, she watched meaningfully at Zexion, who was leaning against his elbow, which was propped on the counter. Apparently, he was deep in thought.

"What are you thinking about?" she dared to inquire after she swallowed her second bite of her sandwich. Shaking himself out of his deep thoughts, Zexion straightened himself and cleared his throat.

"Your story I am to tell you. I need to write it soon," he assured with a blink of his eyes. Beaming at his response, Naminè felt herself overwhelm with happiness.

"That's good! What's the story about?"

"It's a secret that I must contain to myself until the time is right." Naminè furrowed her eyebrows, but smiled, agreeing with the plan.

"What's your favorite thing to read?" she asked suddenly. Zexion tilted his head to the side and tapped the tip of his nose. He opened his mouth to answer, but nothing came out. He scratched his chin before shrugging.

"I am not entirely positive about that conclusion," he explained casually. Smirking, Naminè finished her meal and leaped off of the bar stool, landing right in front of the nineteen year old and gazing up at him with wide eyes.

"Well, my story better be interesting. Nothing about the makeup of our world or any of that stuff," she announced, placing her small white hands on her hips and grinning brightly. Zexion paused for a moment, taking in her sight. She was small and fragile, like a doll. And Marluxia treated her like a doll. And it was his fault that she was molested this time. True, he had come to that conclusion as he pondered while the girl had eaten her sandwich. He left her alone with Marluxia; surely, he could have stopped this from happening. He decided that Naminè…wasn't so bad after all. In fact, she was rather nice to talk to. Guilt proceeded to creep through his chest as he hesitated and glanced at the floor.

"What's wrong, Zexion?" she questioned with worry edging her soft voice. He shook his head.

"Nothing of the sorts. Would you like your story to be romance, tragedy, or suspense?" he switched the subject hurriedly, trying to avoid the guilt. Obviously, the girl bought it and made a 'hmm' sound with her throat.

"I like all of those! But…not so much on romance," she whispered and scuffed the floor with her blue sandal. His eyebrows were kitted together now as he stared at her.

"Why not? Earlier you've inform me that romance was your favorite genre."

"True…But I think love is overrated these days. I know I've never loved, but I don't think true love is anything…well, I dunno. True love is sacrificial, selfless and honorable. Loving someone for them, not their personality, not for their likes or dislikes, but for _them_. The fact that they _are. _You don't hear that these days," Naminè winced as she explained slowly and gradually about her opinion. Zexion was surprised by her reaction and reply that he found himself quite speechless. He drew in a deep breath and let his gaze drop.

"I would not know, for I have never experience the feeling. I cannot feel," he muttered almost bitterly. Naminè let out a dry laugh and shook her head.

"Silly, love isn't a feeling. Not true love, at least. I don't think so. But yet, I've never experienced it, either. But I do know that I can feel," she let her soft voice trail off as Zexion sent her a sharp glare. She continued.

"I felt fear. That's an emotion, right?"

* * *

**(A/N): Fear the Flaming Hearts boxers! Mwah ha ha!**

Agh, it's okay, right? Not the best chapter, but we're seeing some Zexion/Namine fluff, right? I mean, c'mon, what's more fluffy than making a lady in distress a sandwich? Thanks to my sister, forgiven4ever, for co-writing this chapter. I had writer's block at this time and she helped me. Huzzah. I was random when I wrote the part with Axel and Zexion. Also, Axel's milkshake is just…a joke. His rant…was random. Marluxia is supposed to be a sick, sex-driven bastard in this story, even though he's one of my favorite members. –Cough- Besides, I'm a sucker for one-sided Marluxia/Namine. And the 'true love' thing. I've recently read 'Beauty and the Beast' in my writing and grammar class, and that's how my teacher described true love. If you disagree, that's okay. XD

Again, long author's note. Please review! –hugs you-

P.s. If you wondering how Namine 'broke from his grasp', she just did...once again, I was too lazy to explain it.


	5. Hide and Seek

Hey people! Thought I wasn't posting up for another week, huh? Surprise! Once again, thank you for your reviews. I hope I can keep up on this story. I tend to trail off on stories, so that's why I wrote the whole story before posting it up.

Now, I want to remind you guys that this story will get AU. Well, kinda, not really, yeah. It's supposed to be around the _Chain of Memories_ time line, but I switched some things around. It's supposed to be humorous, but that isn't the main genre. Once again, Zexion is out of character. He's too nice, but hopefully it's not too bad. The title gives the whole chapter away. I thought it was an interesting idea...

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, One-sided: Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **K plus

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

**-:-:-:-**

Chapter Five: Hide and Seek

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"What does the library look like?"

Her voice interrupted him from finishing the chemistry book, though he wasn't paying much attention to it. He was secretly stealing glances at her through his silvery blue hair, and he couldn't deny that he was actually enjoying himself. Well, not in _that_ way, but he was very peaceful and satisfied with the current situation of watching her. This time, Axel did not have to drag him to keep an eye on her.

Naminè was still biting the eraser of her pencil, with her azure gaze boring into the blank page of her sketchbook. But now she was looking over at him, where he sat at the table, writing down notes in a lab book so that it would help him with Vexen's experiments. Luckily, Axel still had not succeeded in his threats to Zexion, but he still wondered if the wielder of fire meant it. So each time he entered the laboratory, he was cautious around the scientist.

It was two days since the first moment he met her, but it felt like eternity. The day before, they spent their time talking about literature and good books to read. Naminè seemed more at ease now, since the incident involving her and Marluxia.

Naminè squirmed, slightly impatient and rubbed her temples, as if a sudden headache came upon her. Zexion took a moment before he answered; tapping his upper lip with the long black pencil he was using to take down notes.

"It is…difficult to describe," he answered as he read over his previous notes, checking for any misspelled words. Disappointed, the small teenager sighed. Her hopes had risen, and she wanted so desperately to see it. Unfortunate for her, he noticed her face become solemn.

"I'll show you," Zexion offered as he stood up from his seat, closing both of the books and setting down his pencil, and then walking over the Naminè's figure. Happily, she hopped off her chair and set down her items before skipping over to him and taking his hand. He was startled by her touch. But he quickly overcame the strange rush and began making his way to the double door, reaching out and turning the knob and opening it. He kindly beckoned for Naminè to walk through the door frame first, and she gladly did so. He followed her, closing the door behind them and started walking down the long, white corridor.

Naminè felt the excitement of discovering another room as the two Nobodies strolled through the levels side by side. Axel never showed the girl the library, even though she asked him to. There was 'not enough time', so he said. For some reason, she found it more comforting that Zexion was showing her the library. It seemed as if he was the only one who really cared for books.

Not once did they stop or talk or anything. But she was all right with that. Though, she did grow restless as they went through five levels of stairs in silence. Every level looked exactly the same. The same color, the same design, the same layout of the halls...Naminè's room was on level thirteen, and so that would make…Well, she didn't know what level the library was at.

"Where's the library?" she queried curiously with glittering eyes. Zexion shifted his shoulders a slight bit.

"In the basement of the castle; the very bottom level, below the first," he answered with a gesture of his gloved hand. The girl let out a small groan when she calculated in her mind that the library was eight more levels away. Zexion arched a questioning eyebrow.

"Why can't you teleport us?" Naminè asked in a quiet voice.

"Because I would like to show you the quickest way to get there," Zexion answered quickly as they went down another flight of stairs. Of course, that was an understandable answer, but Naminè thought about that.

"Why?" she questioned his answer. This made Zexion blink once and furrow his eyebrows.

"Because…in case you want to read something. And you can find me there at all times…if you need help," Zexion explained, "Just like you can find Demyx scurrying through the dorm levels and Roxas in the kitchen. Axel is always in his room or wasting good time on the lab's computer when he's not watching you."

"Oh," Naminè quipped. Nervously, she chewed on her bottom lip before cautiously glancing back at Zexion.

"What about…Marluxia?" the name came out strangled in her throat as she spoke. Zexion couldn't help but notice this. Though, he understood the nature of her question. He couldn't blame her. The truth was that he was not sure where Marluxia was most of the time. As much as he wanted to tell her it was all right, he had to be honest.

"I…don't know, exactly," he uttered. Naminè nodded in understanding and sighed sadly. Even though she did not receive the answer she had longed for, she was content with the current situation. She gripped tighter on his gloved hand and hid a smile.

They were walking through the seventh level now when they both halted, both because of the same reason. A portal was opening in the center of the room. For a moment, Naminè tremored, fearing who it may be. She clutched onto Zexion's arm and leaned her face against his elbow. Patiently, Zexion watched as the dark mist subsided and a cloaked figure stepped out with the hood up. Swiftly, the person pushed back the hood and revealed her blonde hair and shocking emerald eyes. Larxene twisted her face in a defying smirk. She shot Naminè an evil glare before scowling at the Cloaked Schemer.

"Where's Axel?" she demanded prudently. Inwardly, Zexion groaned. How he despised her, but he did not let his thoughts show so easily.

"Salutations. I do not know, in fact," Zexion stated with emotionless features in his demeanor. Growling at his response, Larxene crossed her arms and tapped her pointed chin with her index finger. Naminè kept her gaze fixed on the company's shoes as she waited for the next statement to be spoken.

"Why?" Zexion asked the Savage Nymph.

"None of your business. Last time I checked, I am higher ranked than you. Don't you have some books to read? Some of your stupid novels that you're writing? Huh?" Larxene jabbed a finger at his chest, but he didn't budge. To Zexion, she was an immature bitch who needed to chill. Stepping in front of Zexion, Naminè stuck out her chin at the tallest one present.

"There's nothing wrong with writing. I think it's wonderful," she beamed unintentionally, but she was basically standing up for Number Six. Larxene laughed manically, amused, which didn't even faze the little white witch. Pretending to wipe away a tear, Larxene smirked.

"With that aside, fine. Axel has something of mine that I need to have. If you see him, tell him that he _will_ return it to me, or I'll electrocute his ass. Got it?" she threatened again, glowering at the two Nobodies. Zexion nodded simply, and Naminè scrunched up her face at Larxene. It was then that Number Twelve noticed something out of sorts as she looked back at that petty little face.

"Wait…why is she out of her room? If Marluxia finds out, he-" Larxene was cut off by Zexion.

"Well, he does not have to know, does he? I'm just showing her of the whereabouts of our nicely stocked library because she was curious. Last time I checked, it is not against the regulations," Zexion explained to her. Naminè gave the taller woman a smug look and raised her head high. That resulted in a growl from the person in question and her evaporating into the portal that she summoned without another word from her.

"Good riddance. I hate her," Naminè admitted, not the least bit shy as the two continued on their way to the library. Zexion pondered about her bold statement for a few moments.

"Hate is a strong word. Are you sure you loathe her?" he prodded with interest. The teenager sighed and looked down as they made their way down another staircase.

"I hate her. That's all there is to it. She hits me all the time," she exclaimed with accusation. Zexion raised his eyebrows, like he normally did.

"Well…perhaps not _all_ the time. But she does hit me. And she called me a name in front of me. I'm sure it was bad," she mumbled and wrapped her free arm around her waist and shivered.

"What was it?" Zexion questioned cautiously. Shaking her head, Naminè cringed as she remembered that moment.

"Nuh-uh, I'm not repeating it! All I know is that it started with a 'c'."

Zexion coughed, bringing his other hand to his mouth to strangle the sound. The 'c' word was, indeed, horrible, and to think that it would be used as an adjective for Naminè…

The Nobodies continued their travel to the infamous library that the little witch was so interested in. They passed through the rest of the levels, which all _still _looked exactly the same. It seemed as if they kept on going through the same level, but they weren't really. Naminè sighed every once in a while as Zexion remained silent. It took her a moment before she realized how awkward their position was. She was clutching onto his hand as if there was no tomorrow, but he, apparently, was all right with it. But one would label that gesture as one of affection to one another, and she knew this. Though, if she pulled her hand away, he would notice. She stayed her hand, feeling her face flush in embarrassment.

Why did she feel so embarrassed? She had held Axel's hand so many times, as well as Demyx's. They were her friends. Yet, they did not refer themselves as her friends. They seemed so nice to her, though. Would she consider Zexion as her friend? He was quiet, not showing his emotions whatsoever. But that's what she admired about him. He was…different.

Axel was, too, but he was very likeable and showed his true self to everyone in the Organization. He was very open. Zexion was not. Demyx was open, too, for he shared a secret with Naminè; He had an attraction for both men and women, but Naminè reassured him and told him that was his choice and that he had no right to be ashamed of it. If he liked both, so be it. She asked who he had feelings for, and he admitted that he felt something more than friendship with Axel, but there was no chance in that happening for him, since Axel seemed interested in Larxene. But Naminè smiled, telling him that he should do what he thought was best.

Interrupting her thoughts, Zexion shifted, signaling that they had arrived on the last level. It looked different from the rest as they walked down the last staircase for the travel. The basement was dark, but that was the only difference, really.

The entrance of the library was large and dark. Off to the side was the entrance to the laboratory, but that was not their destination. Naminè let her gaze drift up to the large double doors to the archway. Zexion pushed open the door with ease and let Naminè walk through first, him following and the door shutting behind them. The noise echoed against the walls of the library, but Naminè's distraction was now the library itself.

There were columns in various places, with bookshelves lined up accordingly in order. There were so many books, but yet some empty gaps in the shelves. Naminè smiled cheerfully as she released her grip with Zexion's hand and walked towards the center of the room, which had a desk there. Some papers and notebooks were scattered across the surface of the desk and Naminè's eyes caught one piece of paper in particular. On it was written in pretty handwriting, 'A Story for Naminè; Rough Draft'. Casually, she tore her gaze from it, not wanting Zexion to see her examining his work.

"It's so beautiful! I've never seen so many books…" she murmured to herself and she sauntered over to a section of the bookshelves, touching the history books. Zexion scratched the back of his neck as he felt a hint of pride. It was the first time someone complimented on his collection, and he was rather…pleased. Naminè tilted her face toward him, for he was still standing near the doorway.

"Let's play hide and seek!" she quipped playfully with an index finger pointed upwards. Zexion walked over to the small girl and gave her a confused glare.

"What?"

"Hide and seek! It's a game," she exclaimed, now dragging him by the sleeve over to the desk.

"Please explain," Zexion said unsurely. Naminè grinned up at him.

"Silly, it's easy. One hides, and the other seeks. Get it?" Naminè pointed out. With a brief nod, Zexion met her bright eyes.

"I think I understand. But are there any rules?"

"Yes! You can count to twenty, and I'll hide. But you have to close your eyes. When you are done counting, you look for me! But if you can't find me, I can run to base, which is this," Naminè patted the desk, "and I'll win. But if you find me and tag me, I lose."

He thought he understood. He was sure he got the point. Naminè seemed at ease and carefree, with her mind free of the images of Marluxia, which was Zexion's intention on bringing her there. He could not help but still feel as if he was the cause that Naminè was almost molested that day. His thoughts were interrupted as Naminè placed her hand across his eyelids, causing him to lose his sight.

"Close your eyes and count!" she giggled, leaving her hand and fleeting. Zexion obeyed and shut his eyes, mentally counting to the number that was asked for.

Naminè ran down the aisles of books, looking for a good place to hide. Then she saw it. The perfect hiding place was on the fifth shelf above the ground. There was an empty place, but it looked easy to climb that high. So she tried. She almost fell one time, but quickly regained her footing, perching herself inside the closed place and covered her mouth with her hand so that her breathing would not be heard.

Unfortunately, Zexion was one who had the super-smell senses.

He finished counting to twenty, but would have been the same as forty, for he was exceedingly slow to give her more time to find a place. Opening his steel orbs, he sniffed once, and then made his way to the back of the room, detecting her sweet scent. It was easy; her scent was quite the opposite from books, so he smirked. He sensed his triumph was close as he neared the source of the scent. Scratching his chin, Zexion noticed a gap underneath the bookshelves and bent down, hoping to catch a glimpse of the place where the girl would most likely hide.

Naminè took her chance and leaped from above him, pouncing on his back while he was bending low. Silly man; he was too short to see her figure in her hiding place. Zexion let out an 'oof' as he collapsed on his chest with Naminè on top of him. She let out a giggle before jumping from him and sprinting towards the desk. Feeling quite happy with herself, Naminè slapped the surface of the desk and jumped up excitedly.

"I win!" she squealed. From the other side of the room, she heard a groan of pain and footsteps. Appearing in her sight, Zexion rubbed his back and cringed.

"I think the proper term for that would be 'cheating'," he grumbled.

"Show me the rule book saying that," Naminè let a coy smile spread across her face.

* * *

**(A/N): **-Cough- Yes, I made Demyx have a crush on Axel. No, I do not like that pairing. It's for humor. I am not a fan of yaoi, but I got this random idea from 'Hitch' and in order for that chapter to work, I had to have Demyx liking Axel. That is all. XD And I got Namine's personality from my older sister. Ahem, moving on...

By the way, special thanks to 'Zexion's Star' who does not have an account, therefore I cannot send a review reply. Thank you very much! -give you cookies-

-Coughs again- And yes, the ending of this chapter is super cheesy. This is more of a 'Zexion-and-Nami-spend-time-together-filler-chapter' thingy...

Review please! Reviews keep me posting.


	6. Hurt

I hope I didn't drive you guys away with my implied one-sided AkuDemy. I personally do not like that pairing at all, so yeah…It's for humor, but if you like that pairing, then it will be fine. Yeah…but you came here for Zexy Nami, so maybe Demyx-Drama doesn't matter to you. XD Anywho, moving on…I _know_ Nobodies can't bleed. But I heard that Naminè was special because her Somebody was a princess of hearts. So yeah, I kind of have that going on in here. Now, in the beginning of the chapter we take a look at Demyx's confession (which is amusing to me, I suppose) and Axel's everyday life. Then some time with Zexion and Naminè. By the way, some of these chapters are total crack and insanity, so don't take it _too_ seriously.

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, one-sided Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Square Eenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T for sexual references, Demyx's confession, Axel's pranks and Zexion's bluntness.

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

**-:-:-:-**

Chapter Six: Hurt

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Naminè was in pain.

Her cheek was throbbing from the open cut streaked across it, like a thick red line. Larxene stood in front of her with her hands perched on her wide hips, shaking her finger at the little witch. True, she was the cause for the wound, but Naminè would not admit it to the others. She was afraid to. She was afraid of what Larxene would do to her if she told someone. She was afraid of Larxene herself. She was evil to the little white witch. And now she was standing before Naminè with a dominating smirk.

"Now, Nami, feel that pain and learn a lesson from it," Larxene hissed through her clenched teeth as she disappeared in her portal. Naminè gingerly touched her cut with the tips of her fingers as the mist subsided into the still, quiet air. All she did complain about Larxene watching her and asking why Demyx couldn't. She did not receive an answer. Now she went back to scribbling on the second-to-last page of her sketchpad. True, she had discovered that day that there were two pages stuck together. At that moment, she was drawing out the event of the day before with her and Zexion playing hide and seek. It was fun.

Yes, _fun_. Something that Naminè rarely had. Her hand flew across the page, drawing out the bookcases and shelves with every single book she saw that day. She left a blank space to go to later for the main objects of the drawing. A smile crept across her lips and she tilted her head to the side as she imagined her and Zexion standing in the center of the room…

"Nami! You're drawing again!" Demyx's voice made her leap from her chair and gasp. From behind, he placed a comforting hand on her bare shoulder as she regained her breaths.

"Aw, I'm sorry I scared you, and I'm sorry I didn't get to watch you earlier. What happened to your face?" he asked bluntly, touching the open, bleeding cut on her cheek. Naminè pushed his hand away and hid her face with her hair, only resulting with her blonde tendrils being stained red.

"It's nothing…I tripped. And I was carrying a sharp pencil," she mumbled as she closed her sketchbook. She knew she was lying, but it was to protect herself from Larxene's impatient wrath. To her luck, Demyx seemed to believe her false truth.

"Ah, sorry about that. Shouldn't you get something for it?" Demyx prodded as he plopped down in the chair positioned in front of the small artist. He arched an eyebrow as if telling her that she should get the cut healed. Softly smiling, Naminè shook her head.

"I missed you today," she shyly admitted as she traced the outline of her sketchpad. Demyx beamed childishly at the girl.

"Aw, thanks. Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to you…" his high pitched voice trailed off, and Naminè knew what he wanted to speak to her about. They usually had their weekly talks about the certain subject.

"What happened?" she asked with care in her sweet voice. His face was now etched with sadness as he admitted.

"I'm upset, to be truthful…He likes Larxene," Demyx cradled himself in his long arms and pouted. Pity overwhelmed Naminè as she sighed, not sure of what to say. It was rather obvious that Axel admired Larxene, despite her awful attitude. He seemed to like girls with a lot of personality, and Demyx, as Naminè could see, was devastated. She never dealt with a situation like this before, so she did the best she could.

"Well, perhaps he wasn't the one for you," she chose her words carefully, not sure how to handle this. After all, she never did counseling for heartbroken men. Demyx shook his head.

"But I…really liked him. He's so cool, you know? Every day he's so nice to me, yet he teases me all the time. He's the reason for me waking up every day. I look forward to seeing him every day."

"Maybe it would be best if you two were friends. You might meet someone else, or he might see that Larxene isn't worth it. All you can do now is work with the now. That's all you can do," Naminè grinned at him as she added her own kind touch to her already kind voice. The Melodious Nocturne thought about that for a moment before livening up his demeanor.

"Gee, thanks Nami…that _did_ help…but it is hard," he scratched his head and let out a long, uneasy breath as he slouched in his chair. Naminè bobbed her head a few times before opening up her sketch book again, turning to the second-to-last page. Curious, Demyx jumped from his chair and peeked at her drawing.

"Hmm, what are you drawing?"

"What happened yesterday."

"What happened?"

Naminè blinked, not sure of how to put the event to words without the man getting the wrong idea. Well, how to put this? If she told him that she spent the whole day with Zexion, he would suspect something, even though it wasn't true. She shouldn't give too much detail…possibly just one sentence, right? Tapping her chin with the tip of the pencil, she met the Nobody's gaze.

"Zexion and I played hide and seek in the library. I won, of course," she smirked and rocked back and forth from leveling the chair precisely. Cocking an eyebrow, Demyx smiled as well, in a mischievous kind of way. Naminè gulped, hoping that he wouldn't tease her about it.

"I see…hey! Do you want me to play that song on my sitar for you?" he asked brightly, changing the subject awkwardly, though the girl was grateful for it. She shook her head gently.

"I don't know…my head is killing me. Maybe tomorrow or so?" she inquired softly.

"Oh…okay! Sure thing, Nami," Demyx managed to let a quirk of a smile appear.

Two gateways appeared off to the side of the room, and Demyx straightened his position, clearing his throat for one obvious reason. Axel and Zexion both stood there, but Zexion was glaring at Axel while the pyro had a panicked look on his face.

"Hello, Axel, Zexion," Naminè gaily waved at the two Nobodies, but her greeting went unnoticed. Axel rubbed his hands together as he paced back and forth across the room and Zexion sighed, rolling his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Demyx piped up, making his way over to the two other men. Zexion scowled as the other Nobody neared. Apparently, he was in a foul mood and had no intention of getting himself in trouble.

"Axel, in fact, is in deep conflict," he brushed a strand of blue hair from his face. Reacting to this, Axel growled.

"I am _so_ dead! That bitch is going to kill me!" Axel groaned while he cradled his head in his hands.

"What did you do this time? Put her underwear in Marluxia's dresser drawers?" Demyx kidded as he crossed his arms. Naminè glanced at Zexion, who still had not paid her any attention. That stung a bit in her chest where her heart should be, but she had to shake it off; she didn't want to feel hurt. That was the last thing on her mind.

"No. He placed a certain object in question underneath Marluxia's bed room door, and the object is, indeed, a rather obscure photo of Larxene and her nightly activities," Zexion explained fully, rubbing his chin as he spoke. But it was Naminè's turn to speak up.

"But…nightly activities would be her putting a face mask on or some mush on her cheeks or something, right? What's so bad about that?" Axel shook his head furiously.

"No, no, Naminè, this isn't exactly those kinds of activities," he nervously bit his lip as he continued to pace back and forth. Confused, Naminè tilted her head to the side. What other activities would a woman do at night? So she dared to ask again.

"What is it?" Zexion met Naminè's gaze as he listened to her innocent question. He knew that what he was about to say was…not suitable for a young girl to hear, but she had to know someday soon.

"It is a photograph of Larxene performing the actions of sexual intercourse with one of the other members of the Organization, and dearest Axel thought it would be rather amusing for Marluxia to be notified of this, for one reason or another," he answered blankly. With her mouth gaped open slightly, Naminè's eyes widened and stared at the Cloaked Schemer. Demyx burst into a fit of laughter, until he was cut off by Axel smacking him against the forehead.

"Ow!" he yelped loudly.

"Wimp, that didn't hurt…" Axel glowered at Zexion as he said the remark. Naminè was still in shock of what she heard, and Axel wasn't at all pleased with that fact.

"Zexion, you arrogant bastard, don't go around littering Naminè's head with impure thoughts!" Axel exasperated with Demyx grimacing as he rubbed the sore spot of his brow. To Axel, Naminè was a little girl, even though realistically, she was a teenager and at the age where girls learn the facts of life.

"I apologize," Zexion sent Axel a piercing glare.

"Who was she sleeping with?" Demyx asked out of pure curiosity. Groaning, Axel rubbed his temples.

"Luxord. Can we switch the subject, please?" Demyx frowned and agreed by merely shrugging. Shuddering from the previous statement from Zexion, Naminè glanced down at her sketchbook. She would have opened it again and started drawing again, but her mind was elsewhere. And she was wondering about what the men were going to do.

"So, what's wrong, then?" she asked quietly. But her question, once again, went unheard.

"Listen; just distract the little imp if she asks you about me. Make an excuse or something! Once Marluxia sees that picture…oh shit, I'm just dead…" Axel covered his eyes and whimpered. Her eyebrows furrowing, Naminè huffed. She never liked to be ignored, but she had to get used to it. She was a Nobody, and only a mere prisoner.

"Well, sure thing, man, but why ever did you do that?" Demyx cocked his head to the side and stole a glance at Zexion, who was standing off to the side of the room and continuing to scratch his chin while he was deep in thought. Infuriated, Axel growled, which caused Demyx to shrink back.

"I don't _know!_ I just did, okay? For fun. Haha. A joke. And it's fun to see Larxene all pissed off, but I didn't know she was _that_ pissed…" his light hearted voice trailed off to silence and Zexion scoffed.

"We could get the picture back before Marluxia sees it, though, right? That way you'd be out of Larxene's hair and stuff," Demyx offered with a good natured grin. Pausing from withering in humiliation, Axel thought of it and immediately brightened up.

"That's a good idea…c'mon, you're gonna help me. Zexion, watch Naminè for us, will you?" Axel stated as he grabbed Demyx's arm and opened a portal for the two of them. Scrunching up his face, Demyx pouted.

"Why do _I _have to help you fix your problem?" he demanded. Axel chuckled and scruffled up Demyx's hair.

"Because friends help each other out, right? Besides, all you're going to do is distract Marluxia while I try to break into his room. Got it memorized?" Axel tapped his forehead and glared at the younger Nobody.

"Fine…" Demyx's voice was hardly detected as the two men vanished into the portal, leaving the Cloaked Schemer with the young teenager. Simpering at herself, Naminè shifted in her seat and glanced at Zexion, who was standing a few feet away from her and staring at her. She 

thought she could just ignore him, but as she tried to draw her eyes away, she found it hard to concentrate.

"Um, what's wrong now?" she asked, confused.

"You have an open cut on your cheek and it is bleeding profusely. May I have the permission to treat it?" Zexion held out his hand and waited for her answer. Cautiously, the witch touched her wet, sticky cheek again and drew away her hand, seeing the blood stain her white fingers. Her brow wrinkled in doubt.

"But…I thought I wasn't supposed to bleed…I don't have a heart, remember?" she quizzed with a shaking voice. This took Zexion by surprise as he approached the small girl. He reached inside of his pocket and drew out a piece of cloth and a band-aid.

"Perhaps…but you're different than the rest of us," he bent down to her eye level and brushed her hair away, dabbing her cut with the cloth. She found it hard to breathe as he touched her cheek, but she distracted herself.

"How?" her question was lined with accusation. Zexion couldn't blame her. Marluxia had told her everything about Nobodies, but he failed to tell her that she was special. But maybe it wasn't the best time to inform her of that…After all, she still remained a mystery to him, but he could tell by Vexen's rare fascination with the witch, she was indeed, unique.

"Well, it isn't important," he murmured as he unwrapped the band-aid. She scowled at him.

"Why do you have band-aids on you?"

"I have to be prepared, correct?"

"I guess so…how's my story coming along?" she questioned with a cheerful voice now. Her mood swing made Zexion raise an eyebrow. Obviously, she had cereal that consisted mostly of sugar that morning. She seemed very lively that day, but he ignored her sudden twist in her attitude.

"I am almost completed with it. Possibly by next week I will finish it. Is that preferable with you?" Naminè smiled at him and nodded, but was stopped when he held her face still with his other hand by gripping onto her chin. She held her breath as her eyes widened just a little; she did not like to be touched, but Zexion was not aware of this yet. She wouldn't say anything. He didn't know of her personal fear.

"I cannot put this on if you move your head, now can I?" he scoffed and stuck the band-aid in place. After he drew away his hands, Naminè stuck out her sketchbook to him and beamed up at him as he stood.

"What is it?" he queried with a wrinkled nose. Naminè merely tittered.

"A picture."

"I can see that. But what is it of?"

"Us, silly. See the library?" she pointed at the bookshelves, and Zexion couldn't help but admire the difficulty of the drawing. The girl had put a good amount of detail in her sketch and he couldn't help but smirk at the two stick figures that stuck out like a sore thumb. The one thing that was awkward for him was the fact that he was smiling in the picture. He rarely smiled. In fact, possibly never.

"What are you thinking about, Zexion?" Naminè inquired with bright eyes staring up at him. He simply shifted his shoulders.

"Nothing of significance."

* * *

**(A/N):** Demyx is a dork, but I love him! Hmm…I wonder what's going on with Demyx, Axel and Marluxia? Well, in the next chapter you'll find out. I actually really like the next chapter, so yayness.

Reviews are loved!


	7. Go Away

Sorry for the delay. Finals and some ex-boyfriend drama kept me far away from the computer. Well, the last chapter was…weird…But this chapter should make up for it; it's supposed to be funny…After this, it might be awhile before I update because the eighth chapter is undergoing some editing. I already have the other chapters done; the eighth chapter is what's causing me trouble.

Anywho, in this chapter, Demyx and Axel try to retrieve the picture and Zexion tries teaching Namine the facts of life. (cue awkward moment)

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Square Eenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T for sexual content and language.

* * *

_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

-x-x-x-

Chapter Seven: Go Away

* * *

Sneaking through the hallways, Axel glanced back and forth down the corridor to make sure no one was watching. The coast was clear and he made his move. Hurrying down the long passageway, he ran over to one of the white doors that lined the room. A number was engraved on the door; Eleven. Axel rolled his emerald orbs. No doubt that this was the room, Marluxia's room, to be precise. After all, it had his number on it. And there were pink flower stickers around the number.

Axel had no keys to unlock the door, but he could teleport himself in the room. Yet, he felt awkward about doing that. This was Marluxia's room. That man hit on every person in the Organization, excluding Axel. Poor Demyx; there was a reason why he stayed locked up in his room most of the time. Axel remembered this one time where Demyx had glued himself to Axel's waist after running down the corridor towards him. The inferno never really knew what had happened, but he knew it was not good. Demyx remained silent the rest of the day, meaning something was horribly wrong.

Speaking of Demyx, he was supposed to be distracting the Graceful Assassin, but who knew what the goofy Nobody would do? Shrugging that thought off, Axel teleported himself to the inside of the room that held dark secrets. Axel's eyes widened as he appeared in the room, right in front of the bed. He forcibly took in his surroundings.

Everything was pink. Well, not everything; everything minus the marble floor and the bed frame. They were black. The walls were pink, the bed spread was pink…Hell, even the dresser that was right beside the pink door. On the dresser were pictures of God knows what and a vase with cherry blossoms neatly arranged. There was another door leading into the bathroom, where Axel dared not to enter. He was too busy looking for that damn picture, so he began his search. But it was nowhere to be found on the floor.

Frantically, he skimmed across the floor with his emerald eyes, but he could not find it. Growling to himself, Axel paced across the floor, his boots clicking against the freshly cleaned tile. He was tempted to summon his chakras and hack everything in the room until he found the picture, but then Marluxia would find out about Axel's search.

Down the hall, Demyx bit his nail as he paced back and forth on the dorm level, down the corridor and back. He was keeping a keen eye out for the pink haired man, and he wasn't looking too forward to seeing him. True, some mishap had happened between the two, and Demyx was indeed, nervous. It was a month ago when Marluxia found him in the kitchen, looking for a doughnut…

Demyx shuddered at that thought. However, there was a pleasantry about that day. It was the day he started to admire Axel, because he was there for him. Even though he did not entirely tell him about the details of what happened, Axel was really nice to him. He blushed a deep shade of red at that thought; if Axel knew, he would hate him forever, if he could hate. That was sad to think about.

_Oh, crap_, Demyx groaned inwardly as he caught sight of the Graceful Assassin strolling casually down the hall towards him. Demyx had to distract him, but how? He watched as Marluxia caught up with him, staring at him as if he had gone crazy. After all, Demyx was just merely standing there with a panicked expression on his face.

"What are you doing, Number Nine?" Marluxia drawled as he halted and crossed his arms over his chest. Nervously, Demyx scratched his head.

"Er, I was just-" he stammered, losing his words.

"You are supposed to be watching Naminè," the taller man snapped, moving Demyx aside with a slight push, making his way down to his room. Marluxia raised his chin high as he shot him a glance over his shoulder.

"Wait! That's just it, uh…uh…she was…uh…wondering if you could get her a new sketchbook!" Demyx rushed quickly as he ran in front of Marluxia, who answered him with a deathly glare.

"Oh really?" he questioned, rubbing his cheek thoughtfully.

"Yeah, she can't draw anymore of Sora's memories without paper, right?" Demyx gave a little carefree laugh at the end of his sentence which caused a suspicious look from the other Nobody. It was awkward, even still, to be talking to Number Eleven. Demyx winced slightly as he waited for Marluxia's reply.

"Well, I have a stock of sketchbooks in my room, I'll go get one now," Marluxia sneered viciously as he walked past the Melodious Nocturne and smirked at him. It made Demyx uncomfortable. He glanced away, slouching as he stood, waiting for his fiery friend to get caught. But with Axel, he could make up any believable story.

"He picked the wrong guy for this job…" Demyx shook his head pitifully.

Marluxia sighed dramatically as he fished in his pocket for the keys that belonged to the door. Pulling them out of his cloak, he inserted the key into the lock; turning the knob and pushing it wide open to reveal none other than Axel. Marluxia stared at him with shock. Axel stared back and froze from bending over to search under Marluxia's bed. A moment of silence was all that followed the disturbing moment until Marluxia decided to break it.

"What…are you doing, Axel?" the stern look on his face was definite, but Axel was not affected by this remark. He straightened his position and scratched his chin.

"Oh, hey, Marluxia, what's up?" he gave the said man a little playful wave. Marluxia glowered.

"I was asking you the same question."

"Oh…right…what?" Axel pretended to be confused and clueless. Marluxia shook his head pitifully.

"What. Are. You. Doing. In. My. Room?" he gritted his teeth together as he clenched his hands into fists.

"I was, uh, looking for my lost underwear," Axel grinned mischievously. It made Marluxia slightly sick to his stomach. He never liked Axel. Never, even when they had first met. Axel was the cheerful, happy-go-lucky type. Marluxia was not like that at all. His teeth gritted together again.

"For some odd reason, I find it hard to believe that story," the mysterious man hissed dangerously. Making a 'heh' noise, Axel played with his fingers and quickly thought up a back up story. What could he do that would make Marluxia believe him? What could he get away with…what was a believable story? He had an idea, but it was risky. It would ruin his character, but it was worth it. He'd rather be embarrassed than have Larxene torture him. He wasn't going to forgive himself for it, but he had to get out of that room.

"Marluxia…" he whispered softly. The response was an interested arched eyebrow. Axel grimaced.

"I love you!" he cried out, lunging forward and hugging the other man around his waist.

"_What!?_" Marluxia tensed up and placed his hands on Axel's shoulders. He tried pushing him away, but Axel only snuggled closer to his chest, burying his face in the folds of Marluxia's cloak.

"I love you! I've always loved you! I watch you every day, every night, all the time! Other people call it stalking, yes, but I _love_ you! I breathe only for you!" Axel let the words come out strained before Marluxia abruptly shoved him away, a furious expression fixed upon his sharp face. Axel nearly fell backwards, but he quickly regained his footing. He put on a false, heartbroken face.

"_Out._ Now," Marluxia's voice was threatening, as if he was about to summon his scythe and do away with the other Nobody right then and there. Oh, it was so tempting…Later on he would deal with Axel. But now he wanted the red head out of his sight. Axel dashed past the pink haired man and jumped into the hallway, running as fast as he could before he was far away enough to laugh. Demyx shot him a confused look as Axel ran towards him.

Truthfully, the obscure photo lay untouched underneath Marluxia's pink dresser, for it had slipped to the hiding place when Axel had shoved it underneath the doorway. That day on, it remained hidden from keen eyes, never to be found. Never.

-**x**-**x-x-**

"Zexion?" Naminè's sweet voice interrupted the Cloaked Schemer's thoughts as he read the last chapter of the chemistry book. He quickly glanced up, meeting her azure eyes that sparkled with innocent curiosity. They had been sitting in silence for about half an hour, waiting for the wielder of flames and the sitar player to return. Zexion was beginning to wonder what was taking them so long, until Naminè spoke up. He stared back at her for a moment before he spoke.

"Yes?"

"Are you almost done with that book?" she asked, pointing at the book in his hands. Tilting his head to the side, he read the last paragraph on the page and closed it.

"Affirmative," he assured her as he placed the book on the floor beside the chair he was sitting in. The book hit the floor with a 'thwumpth' reverberating off of the walls covered with the girl's pictures. He glanced back at the girl, who now hopped out of her chair with a smile on her face and something in her small hands.

"Good. First of all, here!" she handed him a folded piece of paper. By the looks of it, it had a colorful drawing inside of it. Without a word, he accepted the picture and unfolded it, staring at the image with observant steel blue eyes. It was that picture of the library, with the girl and him standing in the center of the room. There was that smile that did not exist…The colors were vibrant and stood out boldly.

"I am grateful. But why are you giving me this?" he quizzed, glancing back at the girl who sat back in her chair with a smug look on her frail face. She smiled at him.

"Because! You have done so much more for me than everybody else, and I just…wanted to thank you…" she murmured softly as she blushed and looked down at her hands. Another pang of guilt stabbed inside the man's chest. She was thanking him…for what?

"You are quite welcome," he said scarcely above a whisper. Zexion's distraction didn't catch Naminè's attention as she went straight to the other topic.

"Zexion, what's sexual intercourse? I know, kind of, but not really. I don't know how it works," she said very bluntly. Zexion's eyes widened in shock as he swallowed thickly. It was a very interesting subject to discuss, yes, but he did not feel that comfortable explaining it to this girl. Was she even old enough to learn? Well, she was fourteen, and that surely was old enough to know about it, but she looked so innocent and young.

"Uh, I think it would be best if you had Larxene explain it to you, since she is a female as well," Zexion said good naturally, trying to avoid the subject. Naminè shook her head furiously.

"I asked her, but she started screaming about how much men are stupid and I should just get raped instead and learn it that way," she rambled with a wild look in her eyes. Zexion glowered at that statement, inwardly loathing the Savage Nymph more than he already did.

"No, that is definitely not the pleasurable way of learning it," he let out a sharp breath and glanced back at the girl, who still stared at him. She was wondering about a natural thing that happens in life; of course, it would be all right if he explained to her, right? It was just odd that a man should tell a girl about it. But it would be better for him to tell her than Larxene…

"Would it be all right if I composed a diagram explaining it to you?" he questioned, giving in to her request. Naminè took a while to think about what the remark meant. Zexion groaned.

"Do you have any paper so that I can draw a diagram?" he asked. Naminè smiled, lifting up an index finger, signaling him to wait. Turning around, she skipped over to her chair and picked up the sketch book, flipping it over to the very last page. With one single motion, she ripped out the paper.

"My last piece of paper, just for you," she stated, making her way back to him with the paper and a pencil in her other hand. She handed them over to the Cloaked Schemer and he accepted. He nodded and stood up, moving over to the table so that he had something to bear down on as he drew. Naminè followed closely behind, grasping gently on his elbow. Carefully, Zexion laid the sheet of paper on the table and position the pencil in his right hand, preparing to draw out the facts of life. He hesitated for a moment before swiftly drawing the lines to create the picture.

Naminè scowled. To her opinion, he was a terrible artist. She couldn't make out what he was drawing. She raised an eyebrow as Zexion stopped drawing.

"You're horrible at drawing!" she exclaimed, crossing her arms and huffing. Zexion sighed.

"I admit that I do not have the gift of an artist," he replied casually, "May I retrieve a book with an illustration and explanation?"

"Sure," Naminè beamed, grabbing the picture from Zexion's hold and walking back to the chair. She sat down, watching as Zexion disappeared into the gateway of darkness. It shouldn't take too long for him to get the book, but while she would wait, she would try to make out the picture.

Her eyes widened as she identified the subject of the drawing. Wincing, she slowly folded the paper and let it drop onto the floor. Her eyes widened as she stared off into space. A sick feeling crept through her stomach and she groaned, clutching her torso.

On the other side of the room, another portal appeared, with the red headed Nobody stepping out. His face had an exhausted look written across it as he yawned tiredly, stretching his arms over his head. Blinking, he noticed the small girl sitting in the chair beside the window, her arms wrapped around herself protectively. He smirked happily as he made his way over to her. It was when he heard her whimper when he realized something was wrong.

"Hey, kid, you okay?" Axel asked as he leaned over her shoulder and placed a hand there. Naminè answered by slapping him harshly across his face.

"Ow! Hell, what's wrong?" Axel backed away and rubbed his face.

"Don't touch me!" she screamed, running over to a corner and huddling close to the wall. Axel scratched the back of his head in thought as he walked over to her crouched form. He was skeptical, but he leaned over.

"Naminè? What's the matter?" he tried again. He tried placing his hand on her shoulder again.

"Go away! I said don't touch me!" Naminè yelled as she turned and swiped his hand away from her.

"What's wrong?" he exclaimed, practically begging her. He didn't really prefer for her to hold a grudge against her.

"I don't want to have sex!" she sobbed in her hands and moved away from Axel. At that moment, Zexion came in the room from his portal, allowing the threads of black and purple mist evaporate before arching an eyebrow. In his arms was a large, thick book. Axel sent him a deathly glare when he noticed his presence.

"Oh God, what _did_ you tell her, Zexion?" Axel's voice boomed in the silent room over Naminè's loud crying noises. She hid her face from the two Nobodies and rubbed her arms with her hands as she stood on the opposite side of the room. Zexion fluttered his eyelashes delicately.

"I did not tell her anything. All I did was draw a picture, a diagram to be more precise," he uttered, shifting the book in his hands, "I brought a book so that she may learn more about it, but I suppose that she already knows."

"You drew a _picture?!_" Axel yelled, flabbergasted. Zexion nodded once. Suddenly, Axel snapped his attention to the folded piece of paper lying on the floor. It stood out awkwardly, especially since the picture was not folded properly. Axel growled, stomping his way over to the picture and summoning a fistful of fire. With one single move, the paper was turned into ashes.

* * *

**(A/N):** Kind of weird, but hey. I didn't want to describe the picture. At all. I don't like the last bit, but the first half I do. Reviews and PMs are loved! And thank you for the reviews for the last chapter. You get free cookies.


	8. Torn

Hey everyone; thank you so much for your kind reviews. They really inspire me and I appreciate it. Now, I just want to make a note that this is chapter eight, meaning a scene with Marly/Nami. It's kind of…gross, but I think it works okay. Just skim ahead if you hate that stuff. Next chapter is personally one of my favorites because it's completely Zexion/Naminè, so yayness. Another note is, I _have _to change a bit of the storyline of Chain of Memories because I went over it, and it is _impossible_ for Naminè and Zexion ever to have talked to each other. It's hard to explain, but if you have any questions, just ask me; I spent the whole week plotting the timeline, so yeah.

Geez, and I wrote the most random drabble that was supposed to be a chapter in this story. It's called 'Intellectual' in case you're interested, which I doubt it. XD Oh! And it's been exactly three months to this day since I posted this story. Huzzah. Happy three month anniversary. (Note my sarcasm)

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, One-sided: Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T for language, themes, and sexual content.

_Warning: Er, awkward scene: Marluxia giving Namine the sketch book. Skim ahead if you hate that stuff._

* * *

_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

-x-x-x-

Chapter Eight: Torn

* * *

Zexion stifled a yawn of boredom. No…not boredom. What was it? Ah yes, exhaustion. He was extremely tired at only nine o' clock that morning. The night before he stayed in Naminè's room because she was afraid to go to sleep. He eventually left Demyx to the job so that he could catch a few winks of sleep. He was completely unaware that Vexen was going to wake him up at five in the morning to help him with an experiment.

He didn't like Vexen personally, but he admired him for his intelligence. Though, he was a maniac at times. One time he tried to experiment with the microwave in the kitchen, something about wanting it to freeze things as well. Zexion knew Vexen; he had the element of ice, so of course he would want to do that with the microwave. But alas, the experiment failed and the microwave burst into flames. Zexion swore he saw Axel disappearing into a portal down the hallway, though Vexen insisted that it was a failed attempt. He was depressed the rest of the week.

Leaning against his elbow that was propped against the surface of the desk, Zexion let out a sharp sigh. He scribbled tiny lettering onto the blanks of the lab report. It was a dull job, but someone had to do it. Lexeaus was busy doing something…was it weight lifting? He was sure of it; Lexeaus wasn't buff for nothing. While Zexion slaved away at the fill out sheet, Vexen was working on yet another experiment. It was beyond Zexion's knowledge, but he would find out sooner or later.

Possibly the worst thing that had happened that day was Zexion discovering that he was coming down with a cold. He couldn't handle that; he depended on his nose. If his nose stopped up…he might as well be useless. Though there was his scheming gift…and his illusions. He smirked at that thought. But he didn't use those gifts as if it was free. He cherished his element…it was special. Shaking off the thought, Zexion reached over automatically and snatched up a tissue that was lying on the desk, awaiting its purpose. Zexion blew into the tissue, but his nose seemed more stopped up than before. He scowled.

Carelessly, without any effort, really, Zexion threw the wadded up tissue into the nearby trash can. He sighed again, going back to filling out that damned lab report. Again, he was bored. There was nothing to do. Nothing; absolutely nothing. That annoyed him. He checked the clock hanging on the wall across from him to see if his shift to watch Naminè was close. It was, thankfully. Satisfied, Zexion glanced back down at the lab report.

"Hey, Zexy!"

Zexion jumped at the sudden bright and cheery voice. He snapped his head up and his gaze locked with Axel's green orbs. Damn his useless nose! Damn it to hell! Zexion seemed to lose his patience any time he felt useless, and this, my friends, was one of those times. Gritting his teeth angrily, Zexion stood up abruptly. He sent Axel a deathly glare.

"What is it?" he snapped viciously. Axel scoffed and waved his hand in a carefree manner.

"Jeez, no need to be an asshole. I just thought I'd stop by…" Bastard. Why was Axel toying with him? There _had_ to be a reason for Axel's cursed appearance. Didn't he know that just Axel being there annoyed the Cloaked Schemer? His cheery attitude was unbearable. He couldn't stand him. Sure, Naminè had a cheerful attitude, but…well, that was just different.

"What is the cause for you stopping by, Axel?" Zexion asked in a more calmed tone. Axel shot him a curious look.

"Just seeing what you're doing. You do know that your shift with Naminè is coming up in ten minutes tops, right?" Axel tapped his wrist as if signaling to watch the time carefully. Zexion's eyes narrowed before he nodded and sniffed. Axel's right eyebrow arched questionably. He gracefully rubbed his cheek before his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Hey, Zexy, are you okay? Do I need to leave you alone for a moment?" he queried with a soft touch to his voice. Zexion gawked at him with his mouth slightly open.

"Pardon me?" Zexion demanded.

"Are you crying?"

"No!" Zexion's voice boomed across the room, causing Axel to step back.

"Hey, sorry, man, I thought you were crying because you sniffed. And you're acting kind of bitchy, so yeah…" Axel scratched the back of his neck as he avoided Zexion's eyes. A long moment passed before Zexion huffed.

"I apologize for my behavior. I do not appreciate the fact that my nose is stuffy," as he spoke, he wrinkled his nose. Axel smirked deviously.

"Ah, I see. You're coming down with the flu, huh?" Axel chuckled evilly. Letting out a gust of breath, Zexion sat back down in his chair, pulling a perfect pile of papers toward him and flipping it over, obviously hiding something. Axel arched an eyebrow and waited, but no answer came.

"Anyways, what are you up to?" Axel perched himself on the edge of the desk and leaned in a little bit too close to Zexion's personal space. Zexion leaned back and crossed his arms.

"I _was_ filling out a lab report before you interrupted me…" he drawled dangerously. Pathetically, Axel pouted.

"I'm sorry 'bout that…what's the lab about?" Axel glanced down at the sheet of paper, trying to read it upside down. Zexion snatched it up quickly and stuffed it in a nearby drawer. He didn't feel comfortable sharing Vexen's discoveries with others, especially Axel. No telling what the inferno would do if he knew confidential secrets. Zexion caught the angry gleam in the red headed Nobody's emerald orbs.

"Naminè. It's about Naminè," he finally answered. Now, usually he would refuse to answer, but that look that Axel had sent him was…well, let's just say it was enough to make Zexion think twice about it. There were times when Axel lost his patience. There were many times, in fact. Axel had the element of fire; that said something about his short temper, of course. But at this moment Axel's face softened with concern.

"Is there something wrong with her?" Axel questioned hastily.

"No. That is confidential," Zexion answered quietly. The truth was that Naminè was the same, as always. But there were new powers that Vexen had found out about…For instance, Naminè could not only shuffle memories, but she could erase them as well. Zexion wondered how Marluxia would react to that if he knew. Maybe he would. Maybe he wouldn't. It all depended on what Vexen thought.

"Well, another reason I came here was to talk to you about a problem…" Axel disrupted Zexion's ponderings with a high pitch voice, definitely hinting at something. Zexion sighed.

"What problem?"

"Marluxia and Naminè."

Zexion started at the sound of the two names together. He knew what Axel was thinking of. Marluxia's obsession with the little witch was getting out of hand and it was too serious to ignore. Well, that's what Zexion thought. Axel could have a whole different opinion.

"What about them?" Zexion managed to mumble nonchalantly.

"Personally, I think Marluxia is a sick, homo-pedophile who needs to get his dick cut off," Axel said bluntly, waving his hand in a gesture. "I mean, I like Naminè. She's a cute kid, and I don't think she deserves to be treated the way Marluxia treats her. But that's just my opinion," Axel turned on his heel and started heading for the door.

"That's true, and I agree with you, but it is not our place," Zexion muttered under his breath. "Xemnas chose Marluxia to be the head of Castle Oblivion and whatever he says goes," as much as Zexion despised to speak those words, it was the truth. If Marluxia wanted everyone to have an orgy and dress as transsexuals, then so be it. Thankfully, he didn't request that or Zexion would simply lose it. But basically, in other words, this case was hopeless. They couldn't help Naminè. Unless there was rebellion, of course, but the punishment for that would be utterly horrible.

"Whatever. If I catch him trying to sex her up, I'm kicking his gay ass," Axel spat, continuing out the door of the library and closing it forcibly as he left Zexion sitting there in silence.

-x-x-x-

She would have been drawing. She longed to. The conflict was, indeed, the fact that there was no more paper. She had given Zexion the last sheet to draw a poor picture of sexual intercourse. How she wished she took back what had happened. Maybe then her mind would still be pure…Insecure thoughts of the Graceful Assassin entered her innocent ponderings and all would go ill from there. Oh well. She had to get used to it someday…

Naminè looked up suddenly when she heard the gushing air of a portal opening, expecting to see Axel, Demyx, or even Zexion. But the one who emerged from the black gateway was none other than Marluxia, tucked in one arm was a brand new sketch pad. Speak of the devil…Naminè's blue eyes widened when the pink haired man simpered as he acknowledged that no one else was there. She was all there for his taking now.

"I heard you needed a new sketch pad," he declared in a cool voice. He held out the never been open book to the fragile girl, "Here…take it. It's yours." Naminè was reluctant, but hesitantly reached out to take the new sketch pad. She kept her head bowed and held the sketch book close to her breast.

"'K'you…" was all she could muster under the certain, pressuring circumstances. Marluxia was still towering over her, watching her every move. The more minutes slipped by, the more Naminè felt uncomfortable. Hell, she was always uncomfortable, except when around Zexion. But he was not there. Instead, it was the girl's worst fear. The fear that she had could be found whilst looking into the man's eyes. It was the want he had; the lust. It was plain as day. Marluxia kept staring her down until she felt as if she was the worthless being he told her she was. Then, unexpectedly, he held out his hand.

"Now, give me the other sketch pad," his voice was the sickly honey that Naminè always cringed at. Naminè shook her head, her blonde hair swinging dangerously about her small face.

"No, it's okay," she whispered. "I still want to keep it for old time's sake." Marluxia's smirk only broadened as he knelt down on one knee and peered into the white one's blue eyes. The witch twitched as his piercing crystal gaze bore into her own. His eyes were cold, again, as usual.

"I still want some compensation from the trouble I went through to retrieve that for you, my pretty." Slyly, he leaned forward, his gloved right hand ran up her calf, and laid his head upon her lap. Naminè immediately stiffened as he breathed in deeply and buried his face between her thighs.

"No one's around, pet," he murmured, pressing a kiss to her thigh. "No escape."

"Please…" Naminè pleaded softly, clutching the notebook tighter to her chest. She felt helpless as the man she swore she loathed with every bit of her useless soul kissed her at a sensitive area. It was disgusting.

"Please, what?" she felt him smirk in her lap.

"Leave me alone," Naminè whispered, closing her glistening orbs. "Just go away."

Suddenly, she let out a yelp when Marluxia sprang up and ripped the sketch from her hands and then pinned her hands down to the seat of her chair, his face just mere inches from her. Naminè whimpered and he relished it.

"Unfortunately, my pet," Marluxia growled, "I don't want to leave you alone…and I _won't_. Remember that." With that, he ravished her mouth, biting her lip and pressing himself against her in the chair which was uncomfortable to be in. Then, he grabbed her shoulders and yanked her off the chair. He pushed her down, still covering her mouth with his, trying to drive his tongue in.

Naminè inwardly gasped as her back smacked the floor harshly. She squirmed and tried to pound her fists against Marluxia's chest, but to no avail. Grasping her wrists, he pinned her arms on the cold floor. Drawing his left hand away, he let it drift downwards to Naminè's bare thigh and slid his hand underneath her dress. Shaking her head, she finally broke the rough kiss and tried kicking wildly, but her legs were pinned as well.

"No!" she screamed, writhing and wrenching in his grasp. "Please!" Marluxia only chuckled at her demise.

"That's right, my pet," he purred, rubbing his nose along her jaw. "Scream all you want; no one will hear you."

Naminè squirmed even more before gathering all strength she could manage to muster up.

"_AXEL!!_" Her lungs screeched in pain as she let out the deafening scream, close to Marluxia's ear. But he was not affected. However, her pleas were, thankfully, heard.

Just then, another portal opened and Axel stepped in, slightly pink in his cheeks from whatever made him feel uneasy. But his stance was strong and determined. Marluxia growled, grinding his teeth against Naminè's soft cheek. Once again, her hero had come to save her and once again, Marluxia was given no choice but to retreat for now. Fluidly, Marluxia got up from Naminè's form and pulled her up. She let out a gasp and shivered, unwillingly, against him.

"Er," Axel stammered, rubbing the back of his head, trying to remember what excuse would tear the leader of the castle away. "Larxene's waiting for you in the garden, Marluxia."

Yes, the castle, as bare and boring as it was, had its own little quaint flower garden. Red roses bloomed everywhere, mostly from the lack of success from Marluxia, who had tried growing pink flowers. They never bloomed, much to his disliking. The said man tightened his grasp around Naminè's small arm and forced her closer to him, almost protectively.

No, not protectively…

"I told her, I'd see her later," Naminè heard him growled, but then he looked up to Axel. Axel gave him a meaningfully glare, and it had obviously worked.

"Fine…I'll meet her there. Take care of the little witch, will you?" With that, Marluxia shoved Naminè towards him and she collided into Axel's chest, letting out another gasp. She would not cry; not then, not ever again while around Marluxia. He would see her as weak. She was weak, she knew this…but she wanted to stay strong. The leader of Castle Oblivion vanished into thin air after summoning a portal. As soon as his presence was gone, Naminè relaxed against Axel's lanky form. She noted how warm he was up close…He was, after all, the Wielder of the Flame.

"Kid, that was a little _too_ close. You know I can't do anything to him, right?" his voice interrupted her peacefulness in her saviour's arms. Naminè bit her lip, unknowingly. So when she tasted the metallic taste inside her mouth, she winced. She painfully nodded against Axel's chest and buried her face deeper into him. She didn't want to move from there, but she had to.

"Do you want me to tell Zexion?" that certain question escaped the inferno's lips. Stiffening, Naminè glared up at the taller Nobody. But he hushed her by placing a slender, leather clad finger on her mouth. "He could watch you during the times when I can't, Nami. I'm not Omni-present."

"I suppose so…but I don't want him to know the details," Naminè explained with slight hesitation. "It's too embarrassing." Axel stood silent for a moment before answering.

"I understand. Say, let me take you to the kitchen, all right?" Axel offered reassuringly. Naminè nodded in agreement before Axel summoned a gateway to transport them to the kitchen. As the mist evaporated into the air, the girl's vision cleared and she curiously stared at the one preoccupying the kitchen. He was gazing at the visitors in newfound interest as well.

With a chuckle, Axel brushed past Naminè and grabbed the boy's upper arm and gave him a nudge towards the girl. She took in his appearance from head to toe; his hair was golden brown with blonde highlights and his eyes were azure, similar to hers. He was wearing a regular red t-shirt and jeans with a white apron wrapped around his waist. In his oven mitted hands was a deep pan with fresh bread in it. On the boy's face was a lopsided grin. Naminè had to admit that this boy was cute.

"Naminè, meet Roxas," Axel announced boldly. Naminè started by the sound of the boy's name. So this was the one who cooked her meals? And he was Sora's Nobody, too…

"I hope you two kids get along because I have to skedaddle and see what Demyx is up to." Without another word, the red head dissipated from the kitchen, leaving the two teenagers alone. Naminè blinked as she took in the scent of the bread; it was surely banana nut bread. Politely, Roxas set down the bread and took off his mitts, offering his right hand towards the girl with a smile.

"Nice to meet you, _No-mine_," he struggled pronouncing her name, but maintained the cheery smile. Naminè smiled back and accepted his hand.

"You too, and…it's _Naminè._"

* * *

**(A/N): **Roxas/Namine: Blech. I hated writing the last bit because I personally don't like the pairing. Oh well. Next chapter:

_Naminè needs to take a bath._

O.o'


	9. Negotiations

I think I'm going to start updating once a month, just for kicks. I think two weeks is a bit too close. Just a bit. Moving on, thanks again for the reviews! They made me happy! Now, if I sound like I'm in a funk, it's because I am. I got in a fight with my best friend and things will never be the same again. What a lovely summer I'm having. Writing makes me feel better, though..._**I could use a cyber hug**_...(hint, hint)

Ahem, in this chapter, Namine gets a bath. And who would be up to this task? Also, what man on earth doesn't know what a simple braid is? The only reason this chapter is rated 'T' is because of the awkwardness of the chapter. Hope you enjoy.

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, One-sided: Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T for awkward moments and slight language.

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

-:-:-:-

Chapter Nine: Negotiations

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Smiling to herself, Naminè brushed away the eraser crumbs off of the sketch book she held in her white hands. Drawing it back a few inches, she inspected it carefully. It was a picture of Zexion, only it wasn't like those other drawings of hers. She spent time and care with this picture, unlike the others. The others were forced from her; they were Sora's memories. This was hers. It was a picture of the man sitting in front of her at this moment.

True, Zexion was sitting in a chair just a few feet away from her, reading a book, as usual. Naminè smirked at that thought. She wondered if he did anything else besides reading. Well, he did write, but that was related to reading. Zexion was not talented in drawing, but she would not bring that subject back up. She stared at him as he had his eyes locked to the book. Sighing drastically, she glanced at the window high above, noticing the familiar darkness. It was nighttime.

Carefully, she reached up and grasped her hair in a fistful. She scowled. Her hair felt greasy, meaning that it was time to have a bath. The bathroom was on the same level, just down the hall, in fact. It was a huge bathroom, with a gigantic bathtub and a white, ceramic sink. There were metal benches with white cushions, and white towels hanging off various racks. Happily, the girl let out a breath of air. It was the only room she liked, besides the library.

But she didn't want to interrupt Zexion. He didn't like to be dragged away from his books. True, she would need him to help her. She always had help. Usually Larxene helped her, but she always held a grudge. Other times…now…other times, Marluxia would just watch her. She didn't feel comfortable with that at all. Maybe this time, Zexion could give her a bath. Naminè beamed at the thought. Causally, she set down her sketch book and pencils before returning her attention to the Cloaked Schemer.

"Zexion?"

The said man raised his gaze to meet hers. She felt her breath catch in her throat as she stared into his empty blue eyes. He raised an eyebrow as he watched her.

"Hm?" he hummed quietly, closing his book in his lap. Naminè sighed as she fiddled with her fingers. Honestly, she felt kind of embarrassed to ask him. After all, he was a man, and she was a girl. That would just be plain awkward. But she was used to it. Besides, she much rather have him help her than Marluxia…even Axel. She shuddered at that thought. Axel was just a pervert, though a very friendly pervert. There was one time when Axel was assigned to give her a bath. Again, it was awkward. She shook out of her thoughts and brought her attention back to Zexion.

"I need to take a bath," she stated bluntly. It was the best way to tell someone something…just say it simply. It got the point across.

"Why are you telling me this?" Zexion demanded emotionlessly. Well, maybe it wasn't such a good idea…Naminè began to regret the fact that she had greasy hair that needed to be washed frequently. She looked down at her dress and smoothed out the wrinkles.

"Usually Larxene or Marluxia gives me a bath. Both of them are too busy tonight…I think they're doing 'nightly activities'," she explained as she glanced back up at him. He was still staring at her. She swore that his eyes could burn a hole in her soul if she stared long enough. He was obviously having a bad day. Maybe she could ask him about it later, though. Now was not the time.

"What are you asking?" Zexion glowered at her through his grayish, blue bangs. His tone lowered a few octaves. As if he didn't know what she was asking! It was very clear! When she mentioned something like that, wouldn't any stupid idiot know what she was hinting at? But Zexion was only intelligent with science, math and other stuff like that. His common knowledge level was low.

"Can you give me a bath?" Naminè inquired while biting her lip. Zexion glared at her in disbelief.

"Can't you take a bath by yourself?" Drat. There goes her chance. The problem was that she didn't know how to take a bath by herself. Someone always ran the water, put enough bubble bath stuff for the whole tub to be enveloped with pink foam, and brushed her hair. She crossed her arms stubbornly. She would not give up that easily.

"I could, but I always have help," she stuck out her chin.

Zexion glared at her again. Ah, a spoiled prisoner. To him, she looked like a brat throwing a tantrum. Apparently she needed to be disciplined. He felt the heat rise up in his cheeks when he thought of the mental image of giving Naminè a bath. It would be…awkward. She probably was never taught how to take a bath all by herself. It was too simple.

"Just run the water at a certain temperature and fill up the tub," he declared as he copied the girl's actions of crossing his arms. Naminè looked down at the floor. She rubbed her hands together and sent him a pleading expression.

"Please? Could you show me?" Zexion watched her widened her bright eyes as she begged. He scoffed.

"Fine, fine. I will teach you only once. You better remember it," he warned as he swiftly stood up, the edge of his cloak brushing against the tile. Happily, Naminè clapped her hands together and hopped off her chair. She ran over to her dresser that was beside her bed and opened it, withdrawing a bundle of white clothes. Two striped socks fell on the floor and she clumsily gathered them up. Zexion waited patiently beside the doorway until she skipped over to him and grabbed his hand.

Together they walked down the hall, towards the bathroom. Now, now, that sounded rather wrong…Well, they continued walking towards the bathroom and Zexion opened the door for her, being the gentleman that he is. Naminè skipped through the doorway and they both entered the washroom.

Zexion immediately strolled over the huge bathtub and knelt beside it, waiting for the girl to follow. She quickly placed her night clothes on a nearby bench and went over to the nineteen year old. Without a word, Zexion reached over and turned the knobs until water came out of the faucet in full blast. Naminè gave him a skeptical look. Catching this look, he shot her the same expression.

"What?"

"How do you know that it's warm enough? And how do you make it all bubbly? And when do I know that it's filled up enough?" Naminè accused defiantly. Zexion rolled his eyes before removing his gloves and sticking his right hand under the running water. It was steaming hot, so he adjusted the hot water knob. Glancing at a white shelve above the bath tub, he noticed the huge bottle of pink soap. Zexion rolled up his sleeves of his cloak before standing up and grabbing the bottle. He opened it and poured a decent amount into the tub. There was still a displeased look on the girl's face.

"That isn't enough! Larxene puts more than that!" she pouted as she stood up beside Zexion. He sighed before handing the soap bottle to the girl. Naminè turned the bottle upside down and giggled. Before they knew it, half of the bottle's contents was dissolved into the bath water and turning into rose-colored bubbles. Zexion furrowed his eyebrows.

"I believe that you put too much in…" he trailed off as he caught her piercing look.

"Believe whatever you wish! Now, shoo! You're not going to watch me bathe, got it?" she scolded, holding out an index finger and shaking it. Without another word spoken, Zexion grabbed his gloves, turned on his heel and walked toward the bathroom door to leave.

"Wait!" Naminè cried out desperately. Zexion halted and craned his neck towards her before she spoke again. "Will you sit outside the door? Just to make sure no one comes in?" The worry was etched in her sugary voice. Of course he understood why she was worrying. That didn't need to be mentioned. He nodded once as he proceeded out the door, closing it as he went.

Pleased with the current situation of her privacy, Naminè turned her attention to the running water. Foamy suds were near to overflowing, the bubbles threatening to spill out on the floor. She bit her lip before leaning over and turning the knobs, turning off the water. She smirked, pulling her dress off as she backed away to give her room. Stripping off the rest of her clothes, she dropped them onto the floor and stepped into the bath tub, feeling the tingling warmth of the water.

She breathed in long and deep as the water enveloped her figure, but she knew that she had to take a quick bath. Hurriedly, she snatched the wash cloth from a low shelf overhanging the tub and plunged it into the water, soaking it wet. She then scrubbed her body, and well, I don't need to describe Naminè bathing, I mean, come on. That's a little bit too descriptive, yes? Moving on…

Naminè stretched out her arms as she hummed off key to herself. It was ready for her to get out, and she glanced at the towel rack. She frowned. There was something…missing. The towels, to put it plainly. Basically, there were no inviting, warm, fluffy towels to be seen. She needed a towel. How else would she dry herself? This was awful…how could she get a towel? She quirked a smile; there was someone in particular waiting outside. He could get her a towel. She mentally prayed that he was still outside.

"Zexion?" she called out loudly, loud enough for him to hear.

Outside the bathroom door, Zexion arched an eyebrow. He had been waiting for ten minutes straight, to be exact, for the girl to finish her grooming. Why on earth would she ask for his assistance? He leaned against the door as he pressed the side of his face against it, as well.

"Yes?" he asked, monotone. Surely, anyone walking down the hallway would cast him a cautious look. Who would be waiting outside the bathroom without any reason whatsoever? Thankfully, everyone was asleep at almost midnight.

"There aren't any towels in here! Can you get me one?" Zexion's eyes widened as he heard the cursed words flow from the girl's mouth. Everything just went wrong. That was just wrong. It just _happened_ to be Demyx's laundry day. Meaning? Meaning that all of the laundry was still dirty; piled up high in the washing room. Zexion groaned silently.

"Can't you air dry?" he winced as he suggested this.

"No!" Naminè protested, "It's too cold!"

Zexion closed his eyes and breathed in slowly. So what did he have to do? Get a towel. Hopefully there was at least one load of laundry done. He summoned a dark gateway and disappeared into the portal, the black swirls of mist vanishing. Inside the bathroom, Naminè scowled. The bubbles in the tub were starting to fade away, which wasn't exactly good. She knew that Zexion wouldn't just leave her growing colder with each passing minute in the bath tub...would he? She scrunched up her face as she waited.

If only she knew how much trouble Zexion went to get a towel for the princess. If she did, maybe then she'd be a little bit more appreciative. But we won't go there. That's a story itself. Let's just say that he bribed Marluxia into giving him two of his pink towels, in one way or another, and it was a worthy sacrifice, too. Though Naminè would never know of this.

She heard the sudden knock at her door and she held her breath. She didn't know who it was; for all she knew, it could be Marluxia. Though, he wasn't one to knock politely. It could be Demyx…but the way the knocking sounded, it probably wasn't. She decided to give it a chance.

"Who is it?" she squeaked.

"It is I," came the reply. She giggled at the way Zexion's remark sounded.

"Come in," she responded as she slid down further in the tub so that the remaining bubbles were covering her. There was a moment of silence and hesitation before the door opened and Zexion walked in. Backwards.

Apparently, he had no intention of seeing Naminè in the bath. It was the last thing he wanted. Bad thoughts…bad thoughts. Zexion stepped backwards slowly, holding two pink towels in his arms. Naminè watched him, wide eyed, as he stopped a few inches away from the tub. Gradually, he pulled one of the towels from his grasp with his right hand and held it out behind him, waiting for the girl to grab it, but it was a bit too high for her to reach. When he didn't feel any pressure on the towel, he dropped it, having this notion that she would catch it. But alas, it plopped right into the soapy water. Naminè huffed.

"Zexion!" she whined. Reacting to his name, Zexion quickly glanced back to see what was her distress. Right when he did that, however, he wished that he didn't as he put his hand up to block his vision and turned away. Naminè let out a small 'eep' as she jerked, wrapping her arms around her legs and trying to cover herself. A very quiet moment passed by before the girl spoke. Well, yelled, to be more precise.

"You _pervert!_ You did that on purpose so that you could see me naked, didn't you?!" she screeched at the top of her lungs. Zexion gritted his teeth before placing the remaining towel on the rack nearest to him, and then pacing out of the room with the girl continuing to yell at the top of her weak lungs.

**-x-x-x-**

"I'm sorry."

Naminè was seated cross-legged on the head of her white bed ten minutes after the 'incident'. On the opposite side at the end of the bed sat Zexion, in the same manner as the girl. Yes, cross-legged, though that wasn't a proper way to sit. The girl in front of him had her head bowed and a soft bristle brush in her grasp. She glanced at Zexion bashfully. He arched an eyebrow as he listened to Naminè's statement.

"Why are you apologizing to me?" he asked skeptically. Naminè let out a careful sigh.

"Because I was a bitch."

"You do not appear to be a bitch in my opinion…" Zexion drawled, sending her a sharp glare. He was not fond of immoral names. That was one of them. He especially did not prefer to hear such language coming out of the girl's mouth. She just didn't seem one to swear. Rubbing her arms, Naminè sighed again as she stared at her striped-socked feet. The stockings stretched all the way up to her mid-thigh, with her nightgown's hem ending just there.

Beside Naminè were her sketch book and sketch pencils, which were spread out across her pillow. But there, in-between her and Zexion, was a pile of hair supplies. Odd it may seem, certainly for one who had her hair in one boring style every day. But that night was different. She begged Zexion to help her experiment new hair styles. He was reluctant, but agreed. And now she was picking out hair ties, hair clips and hair spray. Yes, hair spray; that yucky stuff that takes forever to dry.

"But I was a brat. You have to admit to that," Naminè urged, leaning forward ever so slightly, which was just six inches away from Zexion's face. He said nothing, but merely nodded once.

"Apology accepted, then," he said forcibly, hoping that she would switch the subject. It wasn't like he actually _enjoyed_ seeing her in the bath tub. It made him blush to think about it. He silently wished that she added more bubble bath soap. But it was in the past, and the past could not be redone. Naminè shot her eyes upwards to meet his gaze and smiled softly.

"Okay then! Now braid my hair," she demanded bluntly. Zexion furrowed his eyebrows.

"Excuse me?"

"I said 'braid my hair'."

"What is a braid?" Zexion asked, cocking his head to the side. Unblinking, Naminè stared at him, shocked. This so-called 'emo genius' didn't know what a braid was? Once again, his common knowledge level got a few points knocked off. She shook her head in pity. He truly was clueless. She gave him a cautious look before inching closer, pushing the hair supplies to the side. Zexion tensed up.

"May I teach you?" Naminè offered kindly.

"Of course."

With that said, Naminè raised her hands up towards his face, grasping gently to his bangs. She determined that they were definitely long enough to braid. Carefully, she fingered three decent sized strands of grayish blue hair and began to braid. Her fingers worked swiftly and scarcely brushed against Zexion's cheek as she kept herself busy. He raised his eyebrows as he watched Naminè fiddle with his hair and noticed how close her face was to his. He let out a slow exhale of breath.

"You get one strand, preferably the right, and bring it over the middle strand, tucking it under the left strand. Then you take the middle one, which is now the right one, and bring it over the left one, which is now the middle one, and tuck it under the right one, which is now the left one. Then you take the middle one, which is now the right one; bring it over the right one, which is now the middle, and under the left one. And you basically repeat this step over and over and over and over again until you have a braid!" Naminè blabbered excitedly. Zexion blinked.

"That is possibly the most confusing speech I have ever heard in my entire non-existent life as a Nobody," he declared quietly. Naminè smirked.

"Good. I'm surprised that you find the simplest thing confusing," she scoffed blandly. Zexion narrowed his steel blue eyes. He didn't like to be laughed at. He could just sense that she was amused as she continued braiding his bangs.

As Zexion fumed, Naminè smiled slightly, keeping her hands busy. She let her gaze drift away to stare into Zexion's eyes. Well, she was just two inches from his face, so she could observe his appearance now. She pulled away the rest of his hair that was covering his face and was surprised to see how attractive he was. Of course she saw him every day, but his bangs always covered half of his countenance. Naminè let her thoughts wander as she looked into his eyes. His eyes were actually beautiful up close. Though emotionless, they shone brightly. They were the oddest shade of blue she had ever seen. Unfortunate for her, Zexion noticed her distraction.

"Are you paying attention?" he muttered bitterly. Naminè shook out of her ponderings and smirked as she pulled a little too harshly on his hair.

"Ouch!" he yelped, reaching up and grabbing her hand. The girl felt her jaw clench as Zexion's hand tightened around hers.

"Your hair has too many layers," she said accusingly. Zexion released her hand.

"It's not my fault," he answered sourly.

"Yes, it is! You could at least have it all cut the same length, like any normal person."

"I have no intention in doing that. I like my hair."

Naminè remained silent after that, not wanting to go into further arguing. Glancing away, she picked up a butterfly hair clip and used it to pin back the Nobody's bangs so that Zexion's entire face was visible. She leaned back, examining her work.

"You think you could try to braid my hair now?" she asked again. Zexion rolled his eyes.

"I could try."

* * *

**(A/N): **Mwaha! I got Namine's explanation on a braid from me. -insert cheesy grin- Now, we start seeing Namine's views on Zexion's appearance. It's not important, though, but I thought I'd throw that in. Oh! And we are exactly **_one third _**finished with the story! This story is about thirty chapters long. (28 chapters, to be precise) That's not too bad, is it?

Next Chapter:

Zexion, take some medicine. And let's make chicken and dumplings!


	10. The Sun May Not Shine

Hey, everyone! No, I am not dead. Sure, I haven't updated in awhile, but I have reasons. I haven't touched my computer for weeks, so that explains it, correct? Anywho, I'm really grateful for all of the reviews! Shout out to all of you guys. Moving on, I want to say that this chapter is rather strange, but I like it. So oh well...this is just one of those awkward chapters. But I'm actually kind of happy about this story.

Erm...yeah, that's about it. School has started, so I may take longer to update. But I'll try my best. And! Yes, and. I have learned recently that some people think that Zexion is actually sixteen...even twenty. I personally think that he's seventeen or eighteen, but I like the number nineteen, so yeah. That was random...so let's continue, shall we?

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, One-sided: Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **K plus for the slightest language.

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

-:-:-:-

Chapter Ten: The Sun May Not Shine

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It was that nagging question that haunted her every passing day since the moment she met him. It was a mystery to the young artist; a pure, unknown mystery. There was something missing, and it yearned to be discovered. The flower would never bloom, the sun would not shine. She felt empty each time she looked at his face. When would he learn? What would it cost to be discovered? What boundaries would Naminè have to cross to gain the knowledge? What was the answer to the question:

"Zexion, can you smile?"

Zexion tore his gaze from his book and met her crystal eyes. Naminè simpered at him as she tilted her head to the side. That smile that danced across her soft, pink lips caught his attention. Her cheeks were slightly flustered from embarrassment from the inquirement. Her hair was smooth and shiny from yesterday's accomplishment. But there was one thought in the illusionist's mind: What an odd question.

"I'm sure that I am capable," he answered monotone, going back to reading that damn book of his. He cradled it in his grasp as if it was breakable. Naminè stared at him curiously. It was not the answer she was longing for, and he knew this. He knew that she was filled with torment from lack of knowledge. Maybe if she would just ask him…

"Can you smile now?" she queried again, her lips forming a slight frown. She was, indeed, disappointed from his answer. Distinctly, Zexion glanced at her, arching a slate-blue eyebrow. Truthfully, he did not like smiling. Anyone who smiled was merely answered by a flat stare from him, except for Naminè, of course. Her smiles were peaceful and enjoyable. But now it had vanished. To him, though, smiling was useless. Why would he want to…smile? A smile was a sign of contentment. He, of all people, was not content. Nobodies should not be happy, for they lacked hearts. He wondered sometimes why this girl would smile. She had every right to be sad. Zexion remained silent.

"Can you smile for me? Please?" Naminè pleaded, concern woven in her brow. She obviously wanted him to smile for her. If she had not added the 'for me' part of the sentence, he would have refused. But since it was her, he would accept. Zexion hesitated before twisting his face into an undeniable smug expression. Naminè scrunched up her face. This was not working.

"That's a smirk!" she whined, crossing her arms over her chest. Zexion's so-called smile vanished into a blank expression. She was displeased. He had tried; wasn't that enough to please the little witch? It seemed no matter how hard he tried, she would not appreciate him. Apparently, this time, she was not satisfied.

"What's the point of smiling?" Zexion's steel eyes narrowed as he questioned her. Naminè scoffed. Zexion watched as she shook her head pitifully and closed her sketchbook. Thoughtfully, she rubbed her round, smooth chin with her thumb and tapped the tip of her nose with her index finger. She seemed deep in thought, thinking, of course, of a reasonable answer that would meet the Cloaked Schemer's standards. Naminè looked back up. She beamed, livening up her frail, pale face.

"It's a sign that you are pleased. Happy, cheerful, even a sad smile is necessary," Naminè leaned forward and tapped his nose instead of hers. "It may not be the best day, but you could brighten it up by just…smiling," Naminè let a hint of a smile livened her features. However, Zexion stared at her again. The white witch flailed her arms up, a sign of giving up, and let out an exasperated sigh. Hopping off her chair, she stepped forward, right in front of Zexion. He patiently closed his book.

"Listen, how about I teach you?" Naminè perched her hands on her not-so-formed hips. There was no answer from the Cloaked Schemer. Instead, he raised an eyebrow again, curious of her behavior. Taking his silence as a 'of course, whatever you wish, dearest Naminè,' she placed her hands on his cheeks. He started, surprised by her cold touch, but allowed her to force the corners of his mouth upwards.

"See? That's how you smile!" she exclaimed, drawing back her hands. Zexion frowned immediately and Naminè scoffed.

"You're so emotionless, you…you emo!" she stomped her foot in aggravation. Furrowing his eyebrows, Zexion thought on her statement. She called him emotionless…and then emo, which was short for 'emotional'. He sighed and shook his head. The girl was never going to understand proper grammar or terminology.

"You are incorrect and an incompetent child," he said bitterly. Naminè glared at him as he continued, "I am not entirely emotionless. I do tend to become frustrated, but only on a rare occasion. Also, 'emo' means 'emotional' and I am not emotional. So, therefore, you used two words that absolutely do not go together, which is called an 'oxymoron'." Naminè's mouth formed an 'o' shape as she listened to his explanation. Surprisingly, it was the first thing he said to her that made sense. But still…he was cold and needed some 'happy' lessons.

"Well, then, Mr. I-am-not-emotionless-nor-emotional…can I put you up to a challenge? I will make you smile by the end of the week. If not, you can tell me to do anything you want," she held up an index finger and raised it to her lips. Zexion tried not to get a nasty thought in his mind. Damn Axel's influence…he shook the thoughts out and sighed softly.

"That is classified as a 'bet', little one," he murmured with a gentle edge to his voice.

"Well, whatever! Same thing!"

"It is not," Zexion said bluntly. Rolling her eyes, Naminè huffed.

"Fine, a bet then."

"I accept," Zexion responded. The reaction was, as planned, a surprised Naminè. Zexion was hardly one for petty little bets and promises. Truthfully, he decided to be amused by the girl's poor attempts to make him smile. He wanted to see just how far she would go. Awful, but yes, that was the plan. Naminè overcame the momentary shock and grinned ear to ear. She had the perfect plan, and right now was plan 'A'.

"What makes you happy?" Now, that was an interesting question. What made the Cloaked Schemer happy? Was it possible? Zexion sneered.

"That is simple. Books," he calmly stated. Naminè crossed her arms again.

"You already have a whole library!"

"So that must mean that I am, of course, thoroughly content." Indeed, his books were what made him happy. At any time, he could search through the book shelves and pick out any book. He had already read the whole library, of course, since his stay there, but he would read another one of his books again. He was rather protective over them, as well. But now, going back the current event, Zexion noted Naminè's furrowed eyebrows.

"It means you're spoiled." Zexion was taken aback.

"_I'm _spoiled?" Naminè nodded, blonde tendrils of hair whispering in every direction about her petite face. Zexion scoffed viciously at her. This conversation was getting on his last nerves, and he could not help but snap.

"I don't demand pleasantries, such as you. You always demand me for _everything_ to suit your satisfactory. You always ask for this and that, and I _have_ to give it to you. If not, you throw a childish fit. I do not throw tantrums, such as you," he huffed coldly. He knew he hit home with that statement, but he knew it was harsh. He regretted his words the moment they flowed from his mouth. Shamefully, he glanced up at the girl standing before him. Naminè, however, was not affected. Her face softened after she heard the hurtful words. This made Zexion guilty of his attitude towards her. He found himself admitting that he was…almost wrong.

Wait…

He _was_ wrong; she was not spoiled, to say in the least. She was a prisoner, and Marluxia enjoyed her as his pet, which was mortifyingly disgusting. How could he call her _spoiled?_ It was he who was spoiled. He enjoyed his quiet time, his books, his habit of filling out unfinished lab reports left by Lexeaus…Maybe this simple witch was right, for once in her life. He treated her unfairly. He avoided her eyes, feeling heat rising in his cheeks.

"Zexion…" Naminè spoke, reaching out and placing a hand on his arm. He stared at it. It was so small, and so white. It looked so fragile, he was almost afraid that she would break. Even though he could not feel her skin, he felt her touch. Eerily, he felt almost comforted. Naminè went on.

"What's wrong?" her sweet, innocent voice rang out like a clear bell. Zexion knitted his eyebrows together in a stern, thoughtful expression.

"What makes you think anything is wrong?" he demanded bluntly. Naminè sighed, exasperated from his stubborn attitude. She stepped back to give her friend more personal space, for which he was grateful for.

"You're usually so kind to me, despite your super-long speeches. You usually can tolerate me, but today…you're so different. That's why I think something is wrong, Zexion," Naminè fluttered her lashes delicately and slowly, yet her voice was stern. She was hurt, and he could tell. So, he made the decision to achieve something that he had never done in his life.

"I'm sorry." And he meant it, instead of lacing it with the usual sarcasm.

Naminè stared at him, surprised.

Zexion shifted his shoulders uncomfortably, trying to get in a more suitable position. Unwillingly, he sniffed, and then sneezed, but he covered his mouth to show that he was polite. Naminè stepped back once and examined him with her keen azure eyes. The reason for Zexion's ill mood for the past few days was because he certainly _did_ have a cold. The flu, to be more precise and straight on target. Though, Naminè, of course, was one who knew how to treat a cold. She remembered from when she was a Somebody. Leaning forward again, Naminè brought her small hand up and placed it on Zexion's forehead, but quickly withdrew it. Zexion arched an eyebrow.

"What is it?" he asked quietly. With a tiny tinge of a smile gracing her lips, Naminè used both of her hands to wrap around Zexion's right arm, pulling him up, which caused him to look at her confused. Their current conversation was officially over.

"Your forehead is burning up! We need to treat you!" she said excitedly. The way she was acting, it was sure that she was planning to humiliate him in some way. Or embarrass him or something. It was possibly revenge for being rude towards her, despite his apology. Zexion allowed her to pull him along with her towards the door; he deserved it, anyways.

"How exactly would we do that?" he queried, halting for a moment. Naminè meaningfully beamed up at him.

"We need to make you some chicken and dumplings! That should cure it…" she rubbed her cheek thoughtfully. Zexion sighed and used his other hand to summon a portal, dragging the girl into it so that the black gateway could swallow both of them up. Naminè blinked for a moment as she was engulfed in the dark mist. When it subsided, they were in the kitchen. She tittered, knowing that Zexion would approve of her trying to help him.

The first thing the girl did was search for a large pot in the pantry below the stove. However, when she looked in the pantry, it was empty, except for the mouse trap with rotten cheese and a half-decayed rat in the death trap. Wincing, she shut the small door and turned to Zexion, who answered by pointed at the pantry above the stove, which was too high for her to reach, and, truthfully, too high for him to reach as well. Naminè longingly gazed up at Zexion, who stood beside her thinking. An idea clicked in his mind.

"May I ask permission to carry you on my shoulders so that you may reach the pantry?" he offered kindly. Naminè smiled, trying not to laugh at the way he asked her the simple question. Nodding, she watched as Zexion crouched in a low position so that it would be easy for Naminè to sit on his shoulders. Feeling her face flush violently, she knew that she was blushing. Thankfully, Zexion's back was facing her. Without another word, the girl placed her small hands on his broad shoulders and lifted herself up. After a few attempts, she managed to be seated comfortably on her friend's shoulders.

As Zexion straightened his stance and stood, he gripped onto Naminè's bare knees for support. The girl perched on his shoulders blushed again before Zexion stepped forward to the stove. Naminè reached up and opened the high pantry and spotted the pot sitting by itself. Happily, she grasped onto the handles and pulled it out, resting it on Zexion's head. He remained silent as Naminè slid off of his back and clumsily placed the pot on the countertop beside the stove. Inquisitively, he arched an eyebrow.

"What are the ingredients we must collect?" he questioned towards the girl. She grinned sheepishly.

"Well, first we need chicken stock, then some cooked chicken, and then we make biscuits! But we don't cook those," Naminè shook her head and beamed up at the Cloaked Schemer. Her face lit up so extravagantly, it made her appear to be angelic. Zexion stared at her before turning around towards the refrigerator and opening it, taking out two boxes of chicken broth, leftover chicken breast and instant biscuit dough. He carried them in his arms and let them topple onto the island in the center of the kitchen. Naminè immediately grabbed the two boxes and poured the contents into the preheated pot on the stove. Whirling around gracefully, the girl grabbed a kitchen knife that was lying randomly on the counter and began to cut the leftover chicken into small cubes. As she did that, she glanced over to where Zexion stood.

Surprisingly, he began helping her by making strips of biscuits from the dough. Gratefully, she let a small smile creep onto her features while Zexion bit his lip, determining how small the strips would be. After the broth boiled for a few minutes and all of the vittles were prepared, Zexion helped Naminè poured the pieces of chicken and biscuit into the pot by picking her up gently by her waist.

"Now we wait for about ten minutes so that the biscuits will cook with the lid on the pot," Naminè said as Zexion placed the cover on the pot. Satisfied, she went to the refrigerator and took out a small container of orange juice. She set it on the counter with a cup from a wire rack beside the sink. Signaling for Zexion to come over to her, she poured the orange juice into the glass and handed it to the slate haired Nobody. He raised an eyebrow.

"What is this for?" he asked monotone. Naminè sighed.

"Have you ever heard of vitamin C?" Zexion nodded and the girl continued. "Well, orange juice has lots of it, and vitamin C helps cure a cold, so drink up!" Zexion accepted the cup, but gave her a flat stare.

"That is incorrect. Vitamin C contains antioxidants that help_ prevent_ the common cold and the flu, but it does not cure it," he stated blandly. Naminè rolled her eyes.

"Well, it doesn't hurt to drink orange juice every day."

"Actually, the anti-"

"Oh, just shut up and drink your juice." Zexion snapped his mouth closed before taking a small sip from the tangy juice. He watched Naminè stir the soup occasionally as he guzzled down his favorite fruit juice. He decided to not argue anymore while he finished his drink. A few long moments of silence passed before the girl let out a soft hum.

"Okay, it should be ready," Naminè turned towards him with a bowl of hot soup with a spoon in her right hand. A slight smirk was fixed upon her lips as she ladled a scoop of chicken and dumplings and stepped up to Zexion, inches away from her reach. Fluidly, she raised the spoon forward and touched his lips with the spoon. He stiffened.

"I am not handicapped. I am able to eat by myself; I'm not a child," he drawled in a slightly annoyed tone. The blonde haired girl smiled softly and shook her head lightly.

"You're sick; you need to be spoiled!" she grinned, bringing him memories of the day's argument. Instead of complaining anymore, Zexion opened his mouth and allowed the girl to shove the spoon down his throat. He slightly choked as she withdrew the spoon. The soup scorched the roof of his mouth, causing him to flinch. The taste of it was rather pleasing, with the chicken broth and pastry blended together. That was what was in his mind until he started chewing on a biscuit. He would have gagged, but the girl in front of him had grabbed a napkin and started wiping his chin.

Gently, Naminè rubbed the soft napkin on the corners of Zexion's mouth. Her free hand was placed at the base of his neck, and he detected the smoothness of her pale skin. His eyes bore into hers as she examined her work, until she glanced up and met his gaze. He heard her swallow thickly before she spoke.

"How is it?" she quipped. Zexion painfully gulped down the remains of soup and gritted his teeth.

"I think it's a little undercooked."

* * *

**(A/N): **See? It's weird. But I like it...yet I don't. It's a love-hate relationship. I didn't go into full detail at the end there because I really don't want 'romantic interest' to 'spark up' now. Well, just a little tidbit. Please leave a review and tell me what you think of this chapter! I'd love to hear your opinion, naughty or nice. Oh, and one little note: Yes, Namine was a bitch in the last chapter. I have had some reviews telling me this, and I agree. Too-da-loo.


	11. Life Isn't Fair At All

Hello again. Ain't I so _thrilled_ to be here now? (Note my extreme sarcasm...ahem) Okay, note: I'm putting this on hold after this chapter or chapter twelve. It depends. The question is, why? For more info, check out my LiveJournal. There's a reason, really. I don't know if it's good enough or not...Special thanks to _punkiemonkie_ for the awesome review that made me want to post this and continue this story. I was feeling really emo about this, and her lovely review made me uber happy.

Anywho, in this chapter, we see Marluxia's side of the story. Oooh, yes, I know, right? And Axel has a main part in here, too. He is, let me tell you, a main character in this story, not just some humorous pawn to randomly stick in here. No, Zexion isn't in here. But Roxas is. Yayyyy...I actually like this chapter, too, but since it lacks Zexion...well, you know.

_Pairings: _Zexion/Namine, One-sided: Marluxia/Namine.

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Kingdom Hearts. All rights to Squeenix and Disney._

**Rating of chapter: **T. There's no language or anything, but you see Marluxia's distrubing view point on Namine. Ahem.

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

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Chapter Eleven: Life Isn't Fair At All

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Standing in the center of the white room, the leader of Castle Oblivion stared listlessly at the vacant chair in front of him. His emotionless eyes had glinted momentarily when he had discovered the absence of the little white witch. She was missing and he was angry. Where did she go? Why wasn't anyone watching her? A surge of over-protectiveness went through him as he thought of her somewhere lost in the castle, or spending time with someone. Resentment filled his empty chest as he gritted his teeth.

She belonged to him. He owned her, he earned her. He was the one who found her, named her, fed her and clothed her. Why wasn't she grateful? He saved her from loneliness of a Nobody, and possibly death. It was merely a month ago when he noticed her in a dissimilar way. Her innocence, her purity he craved. She owed him that much. He deserved it. Most of all, he wanted it, and if he wanted something so desperately, he had every intention of getting it.

It was her sugary voice and accommodating personality that made him sick. He wanted to taint her, maybe even break her. It would give him a source of pride if he accomplished that. If he dominated her, controlled her, had her as his, maybe she would want to please him. A devious smirk played at the Graceful Assassin's lips as a scheming, manipulative plan crossed his demented mind. He would have to wait, though, and lay low for awhile until the time was right. Patience was the key.

His thoughts were interrupted by the action of portal opening nearby. Calmly, he glanced towards it to see Axel unceremoniously standing with his arms crossed. A small smile was etched in his sharp features as well as caution. The brunette twenty-five year old blankly stared at the inferno, not speaking any greeting of any sorts. Truthfully, he despised Axel, but he needed him to achieve his master plan to overtake the Organization. He would deal with him much later, though. Axel stepped towards him and gave him a little friendly wave, smiling even more.

"Hi, Marly," the red headed Nobody piped, making Marluxia flinch inwardly. He loathed the nickname that Larxene had first called him. How he tolerated that woman, he did not know. It was possibly a natural talent he had. Sneering at Axel, Marluxia's eyes flashed dangerously.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that idiotic name?" he snapped viciously. Axel simpered back at him and chuckled good mannerly, making Marluxia raise a questionable eyebrow.

"Sure, sure…" he rolled his eyes as he turned slightly, trying to avoid Number Eleven's glare. Marluxia remembered Naminè and wondered if Axel had anything to do with her disappearance. He was, after all, acting as if nothing was wrong. He knew that the flame wielder had compassion for her, which was clearly pity. Axel was aware about Marluxia's intentions for the witch. Maybe he knew where the girl was. Maybe he was hiding her from the Graceful Assassin. At that thought, Marluxia averted his gaze back to Axel, who was chewing on his thumb, trying to remove a hang nail.

"Where's the witch?" he demanded bluntly, trying to meet Axel's emerald orbs, but failed. Axel glanced off to the chair in the corner of the room, which was bare. A section on the wall was there for the witch to post her pictures up. Most of her pictures were of Sora and his comrades, but a few were of members of the Organization. Marluxia had allowed her a specific time once a week to draw a picture she would willingly draw. He thought he was showing mercy, but it was quite the opposite. Axel turned towards him.

"Oh, she's just hanging out with Roxas in the kitchen."

Marluxia grinded his teeth and sternly sent him a glare. The thought of her becoming close to Sora's Nobody was threatening to his plan. He needed her to take a fancy toward Sora, even if just a little bit. But also the thought of her becoming close to someone besides himself drove him mad. He didn't want anyone else to have her. But maybe she and Roxas would be just friends. That would be pleasurable, yes…Besides, he was similar to Sora in a way.

"She better not develop false feelings for him. You know the plan," Marluxia warned the pyromaniac, who was scratching his nose thoughtfully. Axel scoffed.

"Yeah, yeah, she's supposed to think that she loves Sora and make Sora think that he loves her, yada, yada, yada, I _know_." Indeed, Marluxia wanted Naminè to think that she loved Sora, but that was the plan for much later on, when the Keyblade master came closer to the castle. That way, with the witch rebuilding Sora's memories, he would think that he adored her in return. It was a perfect plan, until up until a month ago. Marluxia did not expect to be drawn to the girl in that way, but he definitely did not expect for her to be hostile. He curiously gazed off into the distance, tapping his chin as he remained in deep thought. Axel noticed this.

"You're not going to…you know, are you?" he asked in a sullen tone. Marluxia looked up to meet concerned jade eyes. He smiled ruthlessly as the question quickly translated in his mind.

"We'll see."

"That would scar her pretty hard," Axel murmured softly and bowed his head to watch his feet. Marluxia smiled wickedly and would have laughed if not for the fact that he was having a bad day. Instead he stared at the red head in front of him through his bangs.

"I know. But why should you care?" he questioned, watching Axel nervously rub the back of his head. Axel suspiciously craned his neck towards him, a defiant expression in his features. He furrowed his eyebrows for a moment, as if in thought of something or someone in particular. His eyes glinted with concern, but not care. Then he shook his head simply, letting out a 'heh' like he usually did when he was half-serious about a subject.

"I don't. Sure, she's a cute kid and I don't want anything to happen to her, but I don't really _care_ about her. Besides, I care more about succeeding our plan than the witch…" his voice trailed off on the awkward subject as he glimpsed away, still in deep thought, pondering on something important to him. Marluxia noted his hesitation and tilted his face, questioning of what was on the pyro's mind. It wasn't often that Axel actually wondered about something, especially the plan that they had concocted over the past few months. He didn't take it too seriously. Marluxia arched an eyebrow.

"Is there anyone who may just care about her?" he demanded quietly, noticing Axel's eyes glimmer for a momentary lapse, and then he shrugged.

"Nope."

"You're lying," Marluxia accused. Axel took a small step back and cautiously glanced at him, meeting his empty blue eyes. He smiled impishly as he looked away.

"Now, how would you know about that?"

"You won't look me in the eye when you talk to me."

Axel started for a split second, an unambiguous, sure sign that Marluxia was right. Nervously, Axel slowly lifted his gaze up to meet his, examining his eyes to determine what he might suspect. Letting out a silent sigh, the flame wielder stared down at his gloved hands and flexed them, cracking his knuckles as he did so, causing Marluxia to narrow his eyes. Axel quickly glanced back up and softened his expression, frowning slightly as he did so.

"There is one who seems to like spending time with her. Wait, make that two…" Axel knitted his brows together as he suddenly remembered the other Nobody. Marluxia blinked.

"Tell me." Swallowing thickly, Axel harshly bit his lip, apparently feeling quite guilty for sharing the information to Marluxia, but he had to do it. Marluxia was the leader of the castle, just like Zexion had said. And he was right; whatever Marluxia wanted, Marluxia got.

"Demyx is really close to her, and…Zexion likes spending a _lot_ of time with her, more than Demyx," Axel solemnly stared at Marluxia, who clenched his jaw.

Zexion spending time with her? It was rather odd, but believable. Wariness arose, and Marluxia found himself plotting a quick plan to preclude the latter to happen anymore. Zexion could get in the way of his plan, but yet he needed him to help Vexen with an experiment that would be sure to help him prevail. Though Zexion was not aware of this, he would be helping Marluxia. If he spent his time focusing on the witch, possibly even attaching himself to her, it could get in the way. Although, Demyx was easy to figure out a plan. He was insignificant, and was not beneficial for the castle. Marluxia face gradually transformed into a cunning smile.

"I think it's time for a new schedule."

-x-x-x-

Naminè grinned happily as she sprinkled pieces of peppermint candy over a batch of thin cookies that had just been dipped in dark mint chocolate. The sweet aroma tickled her nose, causing her mouth to water hungrily. It was tempting, but the cookies had to dry. Beside her was the golden haired Nobody, who was dipping more crackers in a pot of melted chocolate, which was on the stove. She and Roxas had decided to make desert together for the other members of the Organization, who possibly would only show their gratitude by shoving cookies down their throats. Naminè didn't mind that her work would go unappreciated; she was having fun.

"How many should we make?" she quipped with curiosity etched in her voice. Letting out a dry, short laugh, Roxas paused to look over at her. A coy smile was gracing his lips, causing him to look eerily similar to his Somebody. It was not abnormal for a Nobody to resemble his other. Naminè had realized the other day that she and Kairi shared the same facial features. Their hair color and length seemed to be always different between a person and his or her shadow. Naminè stared at Roxas as his eyes, identical to Sora's, twinkled in good humor.

"Enough for twenty, at _least_," he stated with a cheery attitude. "Axel eats five times more than everyone else!" Naminè smiled and tittered at the funny, yet true statement. The red-headed inferno ate a lot, so when hunger hit the castle, he was the first one to go shopping for a month's worth of groceries that would normally last a week. Roxas, pleased that the girl enjoyed his joke, beamed at her.

Naminè admired Roxas, she really did. But she couldn't help but miss the Cloaked Schemer's company. This fifteen year old was not the same as her friend. Instead of sharing information and writing stories, Roxas wanted to play video games and talk about the latest drama between Axel and Larxene. Instead of being honest and critiquing her art work, Roxas praised her. Roxas was very friendly, caring and bubbly. But that was the problem. Though he was unique and Naminè's newfound acquaintance, she wanted to spend more time with Zexion.

Naminè's thoughts shattered as she noticed Roxas dip the last cookie of the batch in the chocolate pot, which was nearly empty. He carefully placed it on a clean sheet of wax paper. Taking in the message that needn't be spoken, Naminè grabbed a handful of peppermints and spreaded them across the surface of the newly made mints.

After the last crumb was on the cookies, she flexed her hand and let out a relieved sigh. As she relaxed, she whirled around, only to meet face to face with a popsicle. Clueless, Naminè stared at the ice cream, which was in Roxas' hand. In his other hand he beheld an identical ice cream. A light pink colored the boy's cheeks as he bashfully smiled and handed the girl the popsicle. She accepted it graciously, but looked at it as if it was alien.

"What is it?" she asked, noting the odd blue color to it. The only ice cream she had seen were the vanilla and chocolate flavored. Never had she seen blue ice cream before. Roxas smirked mischievously as he took a lick of his own.

"You've never heard of sea salt ice cream?" Naminè's nose cringed at the sound of the flavor and looked at her popsicle in disgust. Roxas shook his head pitifully, "No, it's not gross. It's actually very good. It's sweet, but salty. C'mon, try it!"

Skeptical of the teenager's words, Naminè warningly stared at the ice cream in her right hand. It wasn't every day that she got to try something new. There was nothing to lose, and something to gain; either a new favorite ice cream or a note never to try sea salt flavored ice cream ever again. Shrugging casually, Naminè raised the ice cream to her mouth and opened her mouth. However, she was not able to take a lick.

"Hey, kids, what's going on in here?" The voice made Naminè and Roxas jump in surprise, but quickly overcame it when they saw Axel standing in the doorway. His arms were crossed across his broad chest and a defiant smirk was fixed upon his sharply angled face. He glanced at the ice cream in Naminè's hand before stepping into the kitchen.

"I need to take you," he pointed at the girl, "back to your room. Marluxia was getting a bit worried." Naminè couldn't help but scowl at the remark. She knew that it wasn't true, but she couldn't argue. Handing the ice cream to Roxas, she nodded at him as a quick farewell and made her way towards Axel. He waved at the fifteen year old boy and grasped Naminè's small hand, turning away before summoning a dark portal and stepped inside.

When they arrived at the thirteenth floor, Naminè quickly withdrew from Axel's touch and went over to her chair, immediately settling down onto it. Axel patiently strolled over to her, standing beside her as he watched her gather her sketching supplies from the floor. She flipped open the book to a certain page and grabbed a black pencil, hurriedly scribbling as soon as the lead met the page. Curiously, the inferno came up behind her and leaned over her shoulder, taking in the rough sketch that was on the sheet of paper.

"Wow, you're better than I thought you were," he mumbled, almost to himself. Naminè hurriedly glanced over her shoulder, noting how close Axel was to her. Nervously, she bit her lip as Axel smirked mischievously down at her. She didn't feel too comfortable when people stood behind her, nor when people spied on her sketches. She wanted this one to be a surprise for someone special to her. Hurriedly, she flipped the page over to a new sheet of paper and started drawing.

"Sure, hide _that_ picture from your _best _friend…" Axel grumbled to himself as he turned around on his heel. Naminè looked over her shoulder and bit her lip.

"I just feel uncomfortable with someone watching me draw from behind me," she explained hesitantly as she gripped onto her pencils. Lazily, the red head crossed his arms and nodded once. A small smile lit his face as he arched an eyebrow.

"I see. Well, little Nami, I have something pretty darn important to talk to you about." The said girl watched him with interest. For a moment, she could have sworn that she saw a hint of sincerity in his eyes, but that quickly vanished without another thought. Instead of becoming solemn, Axel placed his hands on his hips and straightened his stance.

"We're doing a new schedule!" Naminè froze. What did he mean 'new schedule'? Did he mean something to do with the shifts? Who would watch her now? Then again, he could have been meaning her eating schedule, or her bed schedule. Maybe she would have someone watch her at night. How nice would that be? A series of false mixed emotions rushed through her as she pondered over this statement. She was curious, that was for sure.

"What do you mean?" she asked with suspicion. Axel shrugged.

"From now on, only Marluxia, Larxene and I will be watching you!" he raised a hand and pointed his index finger in the air. "Since the schedule has been rather…confused, we're assigning Zexion and Lexeaus to help Vexen with his experiment in the basement, and Larxene and I are going to chill out with Marluxia and you. Got it memorized?" Axel then used that single finger to tap the side of his forehead. But instead of giggling like she would usually do, the memory witch stared in horror.

"But! But!" she panicked and clutched her sketch book close to her desperately. Axel blinked twice and smirked.

"But what?"

"Will I see Zexion again?"

Images flashed through the inferno's mind. _Why_, oh why did she ask that question? Sure, he knew Zexion spent a lot of time with the girl, but he wasn't aware of the fact that the girl enjoyed his company. It raised the question to mind; what if it was something more? Maybe just friends, yes, but it was the way Naminè had desperately begged that made Axel think otherwise on her part. Then again, who would like a dull, book reading emo like the Cloaked Schemer? Unless it was by outward appearances, which, Axel had to admit, was plausible. No, he didn't swing that particular way, but Zexion was far from unattractive. But who wouldn't resist a hunk like Axel? If the girl had a crush on _him_, now that would be more understandable.

But no.

"Well…the schedule will kick up in about a week," Axel stated slowly, but surely. Naminè stiffened at first, and then relaxed. She turned back to her sketch book and pencils, picking up a thick lead utensil and scribbling it on the surface. For a moment, she chewed on her top lip and made her hand stop. It seemed that she was in deep thought until she began to draw again.

But was the little artist hiding something from her fire wielding friend? What secret was kept behind her perfect lips? It was clear that there was a friendship budding between her and the bookworm. It was clear that she had false feelings for him, either friendly or more.

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**(A/N): **Le gasp. A new schedule. Whatever will happen next? Like you can't guess, pssh. Anywho, the next nine chapters takes place in, I think, a week. Ooh, my gosh, we're about to enter the main crisis of the story. Well, not really...chapters 16-20 are the most important, but ah well, you didn't need to know that, right? Special thanks to all the reviewers from chapter ten. You're awesome.

Next chapter: All her hard work diminished.


	12. No One Is Here

-cough- Yes, I know this chapter is late. Sorry! I've been busy. So, after this, it's supposed to be on hold, yes? That was the plan, right? Well…I may not put it on hold. Though I may. I really want the thirteenth chapter out soon, since it's actually really important. So…this is a MaruMine chapter. –coughs again- Skip if you please, but this is, again, an important chapter in a sense.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Really.

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

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Chapter Twelve: No One Is Here

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Carefully, Naminè moved her blue colored pencil across the page, shading in just the right texture. She was putting her heart in it. No, wait; she didn't have a heart. Well, if she did, she would put all of her heart into it. Let's just say she put a lot of effort into it. She spent hours drawing the original sketch and a lot of time coloring it. It was special to her. It was also a gift. A gift for whom, though?

She colored the last pencil stroke and she drew back the sketch pad to get a good look of it. Naminè beamed as she examined her work. The drawing of Zexion was finished and she was proud of it. But how would she give it to him? He wouldn't watch her as much as he used to, now that that stupid new schedule would be out. Ah yes, that schedule…Zexion wouldn't take many shifts now, due to misfortunes. It would be Axel, Larxene and Marluxia who would watch her regularly. Well, not yet, to be truthful. It was all confusing, but the schedule was announced just that night and would be a week before it would be definite.

Naminè tapped her chin thoughtfully; she would have to go to the library in the middle of the night when everyone was asleep. Surely it wouldn't be too hard. Unless, of course, _he_ was awake. She shuddered slightly, feeling a cold feeling spread across her skin. Just the thought of Marluxia made her cower. But she had Zexion, Demyx and Axel to guard her. And Roxas, of course…

Roxas. She liked him a lot, but he just was not Zexion. Axel expected her to adore Roxas, and worship Sora. Axel had given her a good talking to about that subject earlier that day…

'_But Zexion is my friend,' she had said._

'_Roxas can be your new best friend,' Axel shrugged casually. Naminè scowled._

'_He's not the same!'_

But why should somebody force a person to like someone whom they had no intentions for? Especially when someone else was in their mind…Naminè furrowed her eyebrows. It was all unfair. But life was not fair. She had to get used to it.

She gradually craned her neck towards the window, staring into the navy night sky. Thousands of tiny diamonds were dotted in various places in the sky. It was like a carefully sequined blanket that was spread across the sky. It shimmered gloriously, and caused a person to watch it inventively with not a care in the world. Naminè loved the night sky; it was the only beautiful thing she could enjoy. It gave her inspiration for more pictures. Maybe one day, she could draw a picture as beautiful as the stars. But it was highly unlikely.

These days, hope was scarce. Why expect something that would never happen? Where was the point in hope? Naminè had thought about this for quite some time. And she had finally found the answer.

Hope. Optimism. What was hope? It's the point of where someone may be at the bottom, but they fight for the top. It's the point where a person may be dying, but they want to live. Hope was what kept people going on. Nobodies hoped. Nobodies hoped that they would retrieve their hearts. They kept going, wanting so much to have a heart. That was what Naminè admired about herself; she hoped.

Breathing in sharply, she found herself yawning. It must have been late, then. Taking a look around, Naminè cautiously ripped the picture of Zexion from the sketch book and stood up, placing her supplies on the floor and turning towards the door.

-x-x-x-

Naminè timidly stepped onto the seventh floor of Castle Oblivion. She only had six more levels until she reached the basement; until she reached Zexion's library. She would merely place the picture on his desk for him to find in the morning. She knew he'd probably just glance at it and not appreciate it, but it was the thought that counted. Besides, she just wanted him to keep it. She hoped he would even do that. Sighing sadly, she silently wished that he liked her a bit more. She knew that she seemed to be a spoiled brat in his opinion. But she just liked to have fun sometimes. He took her light-heartedness too seriously sometimes.

Gulping quietly as possible, Naminè was relieved that she had decided to wear her stockings instead of her clunky blue sandals. Normally she would slip on her shoes, but that would cause her footsteps to be detected easily. Socks softened footsteps instead of emphasizing. She tightened her grip on the picture as she felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise. Heat spread across her cheeks. There was one thing she knew was true at that moment: She was frightened.

She was afraid that, in the darkness of the night, Marluxia would find her. She was afraid that he would somehow find her all alone. This time, though, no one was there to watch out for her. No one was there to help her if she needed it. Axel was asleep. Roxas and Demyx were probably playing video games in Roxas' room. Who knew about the others? She wasn't so sure about Zexion. Knowing him, he was possibly staying up in his room reading one of his boring chemistry books.

Naminè halted suddenly. She felt the eerie stillness of the air that scared her. It was that same stillness that predicted the disruption that someone would cause. The interruption, the panic, the worry, or it was just her jumping to conclusions. But it wasn't. Not this time, and she so wished that she was only dreaming. She wished that she was just having a nightmare that seemed so real. But she wasn't. She wished that Zexion was there with her. How much she wished that was true…but he wasn't.

She heard it. She heard that silky, smooth voice. It was like silver; smooth, flawless, but cold. It was like a spider. It sent a shiver up through her spine as she heard him approach her from behind and place a bare hand on her shoulder. Naminè swallowed thickly. She knew who it was, and there was that same fear spreading throughout her empty chest. Closing her eyes, she tried to breathe once Marluxia spoke.

"What are you doing out here, Nami?"

She winced at the pet name he gave her, as well as the cruel tone in his seductive voice. Naminè knew she should answer, but she didn't want to. His grasp tightened, causing her to flinch lightly. Marluxia's other hand found her other arm and he began rubbing it gently. Fluttering her eyelashes, Naminè felt her breathing hitch as he leaned in and brushed his lips against her ear.

"Do I need to ask again?" he demanded sullenly. Naminè whimpered from the closeness and shook her head once.

"N-nothing…" she mumbled. She heard him chuckle silently as if to a private joke. Naminè frowned; she didn't find anything funny about the situation. Of course, Marluxia would. His humor was rather sick. He, in particular, was sick. Naminè's eyes widened as she suddenly realized what position she was in, and it was a dangerous one at that. By that time, though, Marluxia spoke again.

"You shouldn't be alone in the dark, princess," he murmured ever so softly. Naminè jerked forward, trying to escape, but he pulled her against his chest.

"Where are you going? I'm not through with you yet," he teased in a haughty voice. The little artist tried not to panic as she felt him dragging her to the nearest wall. This was not good, not good at all. Naminè struggled against the Graceful Assassin, but made no avail. She was just wasting her pitiful energy.

Her cheek slammed against the wall first, and then the rest of her body was crushed by him pressing against her. Naminè squinted her eyes shut tightly and let out a small cry. Without any care, Marluxia slid his hands down her arms and grabbed her wrists, raising them above her head and pinning them to the wall. Before it could get any worse, Naminè felt her hand being pried open. She suddenly felt sickened; Marluxia had discovered her picture. He yanked the folded piece of paper from her grasp and pulled away, just enough to let her drop to the floor onto her knees. She heard the paper being unfolded and the silence that followed. Now she dreaded what would happen next.

No more would she be able to draw on her own free will. No more would she be able to see Zexion, her friend…Naminè closed her eyes again. She didn't want to even think about how her life would be without Zexion. Her life before was painful and boring. When Zexion and her met, she felt…happier. She wrapped her slim arms around herself and trembled. She knew that she would be lonely without him. Letting out a shuddering breath, Naminè leaned her forehead against the wall and waited.

Suddenly, she was being jerked up on her feet and whirled around to meet Marluxia's murderous glare. Naminè gasped; she never seen him this angry before. Never. She went back a few months ago, when she had first met him. He was actually kind to her, and he was the one who gave her the name 'Naminè'. It was pretty, and she grew to admire him. But it was when they went to the castle when Marluxia changed…he started touching her. He started growing more impatient with her. But now, at the present, was when she had first seen him enraged. It was all because of a measly little picture.

He slapped her harshly across her face and she fell, touching her raw cheek and breathing unevenly. Naminè glared back up at him to see him ripping the paper to shreds, casting them on the floor like confetti. Biting back the tears that threatened to spill over, Naminè faltered trying to stand back up. She let out a yelp as Marluxia pulled her hair, yanking her up and slamming her against the wall again.

"No one is here to help you this time," he said through clenched teeth, gripping her neck tightly, causing her to choke. She scratched his arms wildly, but did no damage. She was helpless. To her relief, he released his grip, but then slid his hands to rest on her hips. Naminè allowed the tears to spill over as Marluxia buried his face in the crook of her neck.

"You can't feel. You can't love. You belong to me," he whispered in her ear, "I _own_ you."

Naminè let out a choked sob as Marluxia placed his lips upon her slim neck. She clutched frantically at his shoulder, beating her other fist against his chest, but it made no difference. She was trapped, and she was about to be taken. Her eyes widened as Marluxia slid his hands underneath the hem of her dress. This was going too far; way too far. She knew he was right. No one was there. Where were her heroes this time? She would lose her innocence this time just because she was trying to give her friend a picture. It was…unfair.

She refused to be his toy. She wouldn't have it, no way. Naminè wouldn't give up her innocence to this monster. She scowled, wondering how she could distract him in any way whatsoever. The first thing that came to mind was clawing him. This time, however, instead of scratching Marluxia's shoulder, she dug her nails into his neck with as much force as possible. Unfortunately, he withdrew his hands from her thighs and clamped them around her wrists, pinning them against the wall again as he pulled back a little ways to stare at her in the darkest way possible.

"That wasn't very nice of you," he muttered bitterly. "Play nice, pet," Marluxia trailed off as he let his right hand release her wrist, drifting it upward toward her cheek and carefully stroking it. The girl's breathing became irregular as she wrenched in his grasp, but that did not stop from him grabbing her chin forcibly. He smirked maliciously as he leaned in, his lips just barely brushing against hers. Naminè closed her eyes and whimpered, waiting for the dreaded moment. But it never came.

"Marly, I thought you were meeting me in my room," came the feminine voice from the other side of the room. Marluxia craned his neck to see Larxene standing a few yards behind him wearing a white satin robe. Her arms were crossed across her chest and her eyebrows weaved together in an expected expression. Marluxia growled silently, low enough for Larxene to miss, but Naminè to hear.

"Shut it, I know what I said. I'll be there in a minute," he chided, turning back to the small girl trembling under his gaze. He grinned at her with lust written in his crystal blue eyes. Naminè gulped.

"You've kept me waiting for half an hour!" Larxene whined noisily. Naminè could hear Marluxia's teeth grinding together as he leaned in close.

"Next time, my pretty," he murmured scarcely above a whisper into her ear. Finally, he pulled away and stalked off toward Larxene, snatching up her slim hand and dragging her along with him. Naminè collapsed into a useless heap onto the floor, glancing up just to almost miss Marluxia and Larxene disappearing into a portal. She let out a huge sigh of relief, rubbing her arms to warm herself up. She was finally free. Well…not quite.

Crawling pitifully over to the pile of crumpled pieces of paper, Naminè winced. She reached out her hand and scooped up the remnants of the picture, cradling it close to her chest. All of her hard work was pathetic and it was for nothing. It was just so it would be ripped to shreds. Her gift for Zexion was never again. She wondered if she would be able to see him again. If so, she hoped that it would be cherished time.

For now, though, she would have to redraw the picture she had spent so much time on. She would have to spend hours into the picture, use her skill and talent, and try her best to make it look like the torn sketch that was now in her hands. Zexion was worth all of her troubles. But it was still unfair for her to go through what she did. She closed her eyes and slowly reopened them.

Why did Marluxia treat her like a rag doll? Why did he want her, crave her? She did not think she was pretty at all; she was pale, fragile, and silent. Maybe…just maybe, that was why he hunted her. And that phrase he told her before he left: 'Next time, my pretty'. What did it mean? Would he go further the next time they were alone? Naminè felt a gnawing sensation inside her empty chest.

She was always alone.

For the first time in awhile, since the first destined meeting of Zexion, Naminè burst into tears. Sorrowfully, she let herself drop onto the floor and covered her head with her breakable hands. Letting out a strangled cry, Naminè wept.

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**(A/N): **I know, it's shorter than the rest. But poor Naminè, yes? Okay, so I'm not that proud of this chapter. But oh well, sometimes there's an occasional weird chapter. Hopefully it's not a turn off, heh.

Next chapter: _Why was she relieved?_


	13. A Passionate Desire

Oh my gosh, I am so sorry I haven't uploaded a new chapter in awhile. DX I fail. And I'm also sorry for not replying to my reviewers; I just haven't had the time. So thank you all- I really appreciate your lovely compliments.

So, new chapter! One of my favorites, just because it's awkward. I was inspired by the movie 'Hitch'- so I will give out a warning. There is mild AkuZeku in this chapter. In case you don't like it, just want to warn you guys. Also! I have an important update- I'm extending this story by two-three chapters. I had a plot bunny attack me with a really cute idea, and hopefully I can have that written out and flowing nicely with the rest of the story. Anywho, onto the chapter!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o**R **y

-x-x-x-

Chapter Thirteen: A Passionate Desire

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Zexion didn't even glance up to see Axel appearing from a portal. Thanks to Naminè, his cold was much better, so he could catch a Nobody's familiar scent from miles away. Axel's scent was a bit too familiar, which was seemingly awkward when he lingered on the thought a bit too much. Axel simpered as he made his way to the Cloaked Schemer's desk, leaning against it and watching Zexion scribble down a sentence. Mischievously, Axel stole a glimpse of the heading of the page: 'A Story For Naminè.' Ah, now, that confirmed his suspicions. Casually, Axel rubbed the back of his neck.

"Hey, Zexion!" he broke the silence abruptly. Zexion lifted up his gaze in surprise. Axel wasn't one to stop by for simple conversation. He usually demanded something straight away, not taking others in consideration or anything of that sort. The illusionist suspected something behind the all-too-cheerful grin that was plastered on the inferno's countenance.

"Salutations," he replied, setting down his pen. "Can I be of any service?" Axel smirked defiantly, causing Zexion to almost regret his question. The way that man smirked was just plain wrong. Yes, it was a perverted smirk; let's be honest, shall we?

Axel thought over in his mind about how he should put this lightly. He believed that there was something going on with Zexion and Naminè, but from what the little artist said to him, he could tell that nothing had 'happened'. Perhaps they were only friends. But the way Naminè talked about him was a bit too admirable. Maybe she liked him, and Zexion didn't. Maybe there were hidden feelings somewhere…well, 'false feelings', but feelings all the same. Whatever it was, he would force any secrets from his blue-haired friend soon enough. He smiled again before clearing his throat.

"I want you to kiss me," he stated bluntly. Zexion's emotionless expression was flawed with a twitch. And then, another twitch, followed by yet another flicker of expression. Axel furrowed his eyebrows and waited impatiently for any type of verbal response. Zexion opened his mouth, letting out a small squeak. The humorous sound caused the other Nobody to stare.

The question is now, why would Axel care? Well, he _did _admire the little witch, despite what he told Marluxia. He had this conscience where he thought that he should protect her. Also, he always urged a fellow member to make a move. That was who he was, existing or not. So of course, it was a natural instinct for him to want to teach Zexion how to kiss. What man didn't know how to kiss? It was absolutely ridiculous! _Every _man kissed at least once in their life, whether it being a member of the opposite sex or the same. Finally, Zexion managed to gather his voice together.

"You…want me to…kiss you?" Zexion forced out. Axel nodded happily. Now, it was a rare thing to make Zexion almost speechless. The man always had a comeback remark, mordant or intelligent. So let's just say that this was a rare moment in the history of Organization XIII. Zexion was shocked. It was beyond him that Axel had admiration for him. It was absurd! Axel was supposedly the most heterosexual man in the whole Organization. Now he wanted him to kiss him? He thought that Axel wasn't like that. Maybe he was wrong…

"Well, Axel, I am bewildered, to say in the least," Zexion started, staring into space, "I had no idea that you had fondness, of any kind, towards me. I have always had this notion that I was the last person who you could-"

For some incongruous reason, Axel broke into a roaring laughter. Now Zexion was definitely confused. His slate colored eyebrows furrowed together with annoyance and confusion while Axel clutched at his sides as he continued to laugh. It took a moment, a very long moment, until the red headed Nobody wiped away a tear from crying from laughing so hard. He straightened his stance and drew in a deep meaningful breath.

"You dumbass! I can't stand your guts!" Axel exclaimed before holding another fit of laughter. Zexion blinked once. That still did not clear anything up. This…_man_…asks for Zexion to kiss him. Next thing he knew, he starts laughing at him because he can't stand him. Well, what a day this was turning out to be.

"Then why do you request that I kiss you?" Zexion demanded through clenched teeth. Immediately, Axel ceased his sniggering.

"You need practice," he said as if it was the most obvious fact in the world. It was not. Zexion needed no practice, especially with kissing. Kissing was foolish and pointless. What drove that insane idea into the inferno's thick skull? It was preposterous! It was absolutely, utterly preposterous! Though, it was Axel, and with Axel anything was possible.

"Why do I 'need' practice?" Zexion queried.

"So you can kiss Naminè. Besides, you need to learn how to kiss sooner or later, and I'm just the man to teach you. I'm skilled at it," Axel grinned perkily, sending the shorter Nobody a evocative glare. Zexion glared right back.

Did he hear him right? Kiss Naminè? Why would he want to kiss _her_ of all people? Of course, he enjoyed her company, and she was possibly even his friend, but to kiss her? Did he miss something in the recent events of his non-existent life?

"Why would I even think of kissing Naminè?" Zexion narrowed his steel blue eyes dangerously and drummed the surface of the desk with his gloved fingertips.

"Because you like her," Axel shrugged. Oh, this was rich. Now Zexion was accused of having feelings for the witch. Well, that wasn't true, in a sense…Sure, he watched her because he was practically guarding her, but he just merely cared for her. He didn't 'like' her in the way that Axel was suggested. It was impossible even if it _were _true, but it wasn't, so why even bothering to think over that idea? Zexion scowled before shaking his head in the negative.

"I do not."

"Then why do you spend time with her?" Stupid question! Why did he have to ask that?

"Because she asked me to," Zexion gritted his teeth together. He was getting agitated. He never lost his cool. So why was this a sensitive subject?

"You could say no, and now you're writing her a story. Pretty obvious there, buddy," Axel folded his arms across his chest and tapped the toe of his boot repeatedly. Growling softly, Zexion rubbed the bridge of his nose. First of all, it was his free will whether to say no or yes. He shouldn't be judged there. Secondly, he liked writing. Besides, he'd rather write down ideas for a well-thought-up story to tell the artist rather than come up with a cheesy five minute story like Demyx. Lastly, it was _not_ obvious. It just…wasn't.

"You're not going to leave me alone until I negotiate, are you?" the Cloaked Schemer covered his eyes with his hand and sighed.

"Nope," Axel beamed, taking the other man's response as a sign of giving in. And he just had to keep going, "I will hunt you down every day, I will haunt your dreams at night. I will burn all of your books on philosophy (which is your favorite) and grant Demyx permission to practice his sitar in this here library." Why was Axel so desperate? Why? But Zexion would rather have a minute of pure horror instead of weeks of torture. But was kissing so important? Axel, to Zexion's point of view, was an idiot. An ignorant, idiotic…idiot.

"Fine! If it means you'll cease this torture, then fine," Zexion snapped.

Axel smirked in triumph as he sat down in a nearby chair. Zexion rose up from his chair silently and swiftly walked over to Axel, standing right in front of that cursed, smiling bastard. How he _loathed_ him now. He took a mental note to poison Axel's supper. Clearing his throat, Axel straightened his position and spoke in a high-pitched voice.

"Oh, Zexy, you're _sooooo _handsome! I love you so much!" he giggled at the end of his sentence. Zexion felt a sudden, burning, passionate desire to strangle that bastard that instant. When that man giggled, it made Zexion sick to his stomach.

"Please stop that hideous tittering…" he snarled warningly as he stared into the wielder of flames' emerald orbs. Axel set his mouth to a grim, soft smile. He closed his eyes expectedly. Zexion groaned and slapped his forehead. It shouldn't be too hard. It was just kissing Axel… which was completely gross. Gods forbid if someone caught them. He couldn't live it down. If that man opened his mouth, Zexion _was_ going to murder him. Just a quick peck, nothing serious. He slowly placed each of his hands on each of the arms of the chair.

Carefully, he leaned closer and closer, until they were just inches apart. Zexion's breathing hitched and he leaned even closer until he could practically feel Axel's heat. His eyes flitted across the pyro's sharp features, from his sculptured nose, his cheekbones, to the way Axel's eyelashes met his cheeks. Dear _gods,_ was he admiring his appearance? Hell no. No, no, no, it was just _wrong;_ he hated this Nobody with a passion! He winced, cringing with disgust before making the quick decision to hurriedly lean in hastily and place his tasteless lips on the warm mouth of his opposing enemy. A whimper escaped his throat as his steel eyes squinted with dread.

And it had to be that split second when Demyx walked in…

.x.x.x.

Hearing sudden sobbing noises, Naminè quickly looked up, wondering what, or who, was the source of the sound. The portal that had just appeared in the center of the room swirled around Demyx's crying form. He was in a crouched position and shaking uncontrollably. Panic entered the girl's mind as the unspeakable fleeted across her thoughts. Letting out a worried gasp, Naminè dropped her items on the floor and rushed over to her friend in need. It wasn't common for this to happen. In fact, this was the first time. She rarely had seen Demyx cry, even though he'd be considered the type.

Cautiously, Naminè knelt down beside the Melodious Nocturne and scarcely touched his trembling shoulder. He tremored under her touch and lifted his bleary gaze up. Naminè frowned as she caught a glimpse of Demyx's tear-stricken face. It was pitiful, and it reminded her how Nobodies didn't have hearts. If they did, she knew Demyx's would be broken. She could just tell by the way his eyes were pained.

"What's wrong, Demyx?" Naminè asked kindly. Without a word, Demyx lunged forward, wrapping his arms around Naminè's thin waist and burying his face in her chest. Naminè unconsciously tensed up.

It wasn't that she didn't enjoy him hugging her. She would hug him any day, any time! It was just that she felt quite violated by the way Demyx was clutching onto her as if she was his lifeline. Naminè winced, but recovered by returning the embrace. Her chin rested on top of his head and she hesitated.

"What's wrong?" she tried again.

"He was _kissing_ him!" Demyx bawled loudly. It was unclear, so Naminè scowled.

"Who was kissing who?" she questioned suspiciously.

"Zexion was making out with Axel!" Demyx cried and hugged her tighter. Naminè breathing ceased as she stiffened. She was frozen. She was…shocked. Speechless, to be more exact. Namine was horrified. If Zexion liked Axel, couldn't he tell her? Weren't they friends?

"Zexion? Kissing Axel?" she echoed, hoping that she heard wrong. How she wished that she heard wrong. She didn't.

"Yes!" Demyx screeched, breaking into more tears. Naminè cringed as she felt the tears soak the front of her only dress. To think, though, that Zexion, of all people, kissing Axel! It was horrible! Why didn't Zexion tell Naminè about their relationship? She thought that friends shared secrets, not keep them from one another. Well, at least Demyx told her secrets. He was her friend, at least…

Naminè gently pulled back, silently missing Demyx's warmth. She bent down lower to meet Demyx's ocean blue gaze. Another awkward moment passed before she leaned in, placing a soft kiss on Demyx's cheek. She didn't know what else to do. She tasted the salty tears that were now dried on his face. Hurriedly, she drew away, seeing his appalled expression. It was a friendship kiss; anyone would know this. Demyx bowed his head and sighed.

"I'm sorry, Nami…I'm just so upset…" Demyx murmured, closing his eyes.

"I know. I am too," Demyx shot her a confused look, but she continued, "I'm upset that you were hurt. It hurts to see my friends get hurt, even though they may not feel the same about me. And…I'm upset about the fact that Zexion kissed Axel…" Naminè struggled with her words. They were painful. She didn't know why it bothered her so much. It wasn't just the whole 'secret' thing and she knew this. What if she liked Zexion a bit more? No! No, no, no!

No…yes.

It was probably true. Why else would she be so upset? She was okay with the whole homosexual thing. Demyx was bisexual, and she was fine with it. In fact, she encouraged him about it. But when news come with Zexion being gay, well, she gets all upset. How does she explain that? Is it possible to like him? He was her friend, sure. Only a friend. Maybe, just maybe, she liked his strange personality. Maybe she liked how sarcastic he was. Maybe, just maybe, she liked him a lot. But Nobodies had no hearts! How was it possible? Unless it was false feelings, of course…but hold on. Naminè knew that love was not a feeling. But she didn't love him! Did she?

Naminè shut her eyes. This was too much to think about. She had to deal with the now, and now Demyx was having an emotional breakdown, even though he basically could not feel. She knew that she would have to demand whatever secrets Zexion was hiding from him. She had to. She had to confirm these suspicions. But could she handle the truth?

.x.x.x.

She stared at him. She gripped the blue colored pencil tightly, nearly breaking it in two. How much she wanted to slap the man sitting in front of her. He sat there as if nothing was wrong. Everything was wrong! His behavior, her recent discovery of admiration towards him, Demyx's breakdown, Marluxia stalking her, everything! She had to break the silence and go straight to the subject…but how? What could she say? What were the options? She breathed in before looking back at the short Nobody sitting in the chair.

"Are you gay?" Naminè asked, setting her pencil down on her sketch pad.

Zexion glanced up suddenly and locked his piercing eyes with hers. Yes again, another odd question from the witch. It was random, true, and uncalled for. Gay? As in happy or the other meaning for it? This girl needed to learn how to communicate with others. He started.

"What?" he demanded incredulously, wondering if he misheard her or something of the sorts. Naminè leaned back in her chair.

"You heard me, Mr. Wise Guy," she stuck her chin out stubbornly. Obviously, he had done something to vex her, or else she wouldn't act like this. Zexion closed his book and set it on his lap, wondering how to answer this interesting question.

"In what sense?" Zexion returned flatly. Hah, there was a good comeback to weasel his way out of the inept question. He had an idea of the nature of her question, but there was no way for her to know what took place just thirty minutes ago.

"What do you mean?" Naminè arched an eyebrow. Zexion rolled his eyes.

"'Gay' can mean happy. If that is the case, then no, I am not happy. We had this discussion a few days ago, I believe, and I have already told you this. Therefore, I shall like to end this conversation," Zexion turned back to his book and reopened it, flipping the pages back to his marked place. Naminè, however, was taken aback. Those words bit her hard, though she would hate to admit it. So, basically, he didn't want to talk to her anymore? What was wrong with him? _You're not the same…_ Naminè felt her lower lip tremble against her will, so she bit it. Instead, she snapped.

"You pompous, rude, arrogant _jerk!_ I mean are you homosexual, you stupid dimwit!" Naminè threw her pencils to the floor and they scattered helplessly, some of them rolling over to Zexion's feet as she screeched, her voice nearly cracking with anger. He stared at her. Her attitude surprised him. Usually she was so sweet and kind, and gentle, too. But today she was so… _mad_ at him. He blinked once.

"No," Zexion answered after a few minutes of rage and confusion had passed.

"Are you bisexual?" Naminè tried again. Zexion sighed dramatically and shook his head. He didn't prefer to explain his orientation. It was somewhat personal. The girl in front of him seemed to have an issue with it…his eyebrows furrowed.

"I am neither. I do not have any attraction for male or female. Does that satisfy your question?" Naminè scowled at his answer. What a stupid man.

"No. Does that mean you're the opposite of bisexual?" Zexion stared at her, perplexed. Scratching her chin, Naminè tried to think of the right term.

"You're like, asexual, aren't you?" she pointed at him with a triumphant smirk. But to her dismay, he shook his head more vividly and confirmed. This chat was turning more and more inexplicable by each passing minute…

"No. I do not reproduce by myself and I do not see the source of your question-" Zexion was cut off. Yes, _he_ was cut off by the little girl who was having raging hormones. He never enjoyed being interrupted. In fact, he despised it. But what she said made him think twice on giving her a death glare.

"How come you were making out with Axel, then, if you're not gay or bisexual?! At least Demyx was honest with me instead of keeping it a secret or lying about it! There's nothing to be ashamed of! If you're gay, then fine! I just wish I knew before-" Instead of being interrupted herself, Naminè stopped her own speech. She wouldn't dare go too far. She almost spilled it out! How horrid that would be? Damn her hormones!

Zexion, meanwhile, gawked at her. He didn't move. How the hell did this girl find out? _How?_ Axel and himself had made Demyx swear not to tell anyone, but he went ahead and told Naminè of all people! And now she was accusing him of being gay, and for some reason, she was upset about it. As long as she didn't know _why_ he kissed Axel, everything would be fine. If she knew, she'd treat him like the stupidest Nobody. She wouldn't look at him the same if she knew that Axel thought that Zexion had false feelings for the witch. That was unclear…well, moving on…

"I was forced to kiss him," Zexion stated quietly and cautiously. Naminè's mouth formed an 'o' shape.

"Forced? What?"

"Yes. It was either I kiss him or endure weeks of torture." There. That was the truth. Not all of it. But the truth.

"Does he like you?" No, not that question…the answer was 'he hates my guts', but all that came was a simple 'no'. Now Naminè looked skeptical. Of course she would. Oh, now came that dreaded question…

"I'm confused. Why did he ask you to kiss him?"

Damn it! She had to ask that! She just had to! What could Zexion say? He couldn't tell her _why_ Axel wanted him to kiss him. That would just ruin everything. Zexion brainstormed during the few seconds he had. A mental light bulb clicked in his mind. Adjusting his position, he glanced over at her.

"He wanted to teach me. He said he wanted to help a fellow member with the ways of the world," Zexion rushed his words, a little bit _too_ rushed. Naminè glared at him and sneered.

"Oh, I see…well, I guess Demyx can now rest easy when I tell him," she smiled brightly, giving off the sign that she had a sudden mood swing. She breathed out, relieved. Zexion watched her relax as she dived into her drawing…It was odd seeing her so reassured by a simple answer, something that he rarely witnessed. One question remained imprinted in his mind: _Why was she relieved?_

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A/N: Lol, that was just wrong on so many levels...XD So let me know what you think! I know it's an awkward chapter, but I plan on clarifying Axel's intentions in the future. X3


	14. Calm Before The Storm

(A/N): Hey guys! Sorry it's been a year since I've updated; I've been caught up with school and everything else. So I hope this is okay for you guys to enjoy. I'm sorry if it's not exciting or anything; but as the chapter title states, it's the 'calm before the storm', before everything happens and things go crazy with Sora coming to Castle Oblivion. I have some news. I'm going to cut the story short, just because. I was planning on writing ten chapters based on Chain of Memories, but I'm afraid that would bore you guys. So yeah. It'll work out. :D

By the way, this chapter is more focused on Demyx, and also Zexion. Hopefully, you guys will be happy with this chapter. I'd love to have some positive reviews, and even some critiques. I promise to update sooner, lol. I'm re-writing some chapters, so it may take awhile. I hope you guys will stick with this story; it means a lot to me.

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All rights to Square Enix and Disney._

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_T_ e **L **L - _M _e - **A - **S _t _o **R **y

-x-x-x-

Chapter Fourteen: Calm Before the Storm

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Demyx stared at the pink haired man through bleary ocean eyes as he took in his request. It could not be true, could it? Why? Why was this happening to him? Why did Marluxia coldly state it as if it meant absolutely nothing? It meant the world to the Melodious Nocturne! This was everything he had. Everybody he grew to knew, everybody he grew attached to…he had to leave them all because of a stupid change of plans. And here Number Eleven was acting as if Demyx did not have a heart. He did too have a heart! How dare he try to believe any different?

Why did everybody say the opposite? Why did they always tell Demyx that he didn't have a heart? He could have sworn he could feel emotions just as good as any other. He could feel pain, happiness, sadness, and love, even. He loved one person in particular, and he loved the little girl that he used to watch every day. But not now. Now he had to leave the castle, and go back to that stupid World That Never Was. Everyone there was mean to him, though. He despised that place. Xigbar, Xaldin…Saïx and even Xemnas treated him as if he were dumb and weak. But here at Castle Oblivion, he was with his friends.

Axel, for one; he was his best friend. Too bad he developed more sincere feelings for the red head, though. Demyx nearly blushed at the thought of the inferno. True, he admired him greatly. He loved him, he was sure. His personality and his belief in having real feelings. Yes! Axel _did_ act as if he had feelings, real feelings, just like Demyx. That was one similarity. The next…well, they were both hyperactive, though Axel was the more serious one.

Zexion was a different matter. He and Naminè seemed to like to spend time together. More than usual, actually. For some time, Demyx was jealous that Naminè enjoyed Zexion's company more than his. It had hurt. But at the same time, he was happy, for Axel had started spending more time with _him_. That was what made Demyx keep on hoping and praying that Axel may, just may, like him in return. But now, it was all at the end. He would not see Axel every day like he used to. He would not be able to tell little Nami stories, like he preferred to. He would not be able to joke about Marluxia and Larxene with Axel like he used to. Demyx sighed.

Standing in front of him was the brunette leader of the castle. He stood a few inches taller than Demyx, making him feel quite small, though not as small as Zexion. On his face, he wore a triumphant smirk and his eyebrows were arched deviously. His eyes darkened a few shades and he sneered at the water loving Nobody. Demyx remembered his cruel words as he swallowed thickly and bit his lip.

"I'm…leaving?" he asked in a quiet tone, almost not loud enough for Marluxia to hear. The said man's smile broadened.

"Yes."

"I'm…not useful?"

"Nope."

"I'm…a burden?"

"Yes."

How simple was his words, yet so painful. Yes, Marluxia had explained to Demyx that he was leaving, useless, and a burden to the members residing in Castle Oblivion. He apparently got in the way of every little thing. He was annoying, loud, and caused Vexen to stress, which was not good for the experiment that he was previously working on. And, according to the leader of the castle, it was crucial for the future of the Organization. So, if the Organization failed to exist and every member was condemned to death, it would be Demyx's fault, since he did not leave Oblivion. Or, he could leave and everyone live their life carefree.

Demyx hated being a burden. That was the last thing he wanted. He wanted the Organization to accomplish…whatever they wanted to accomplish. He wanted everyone to be happy. If it was his fault that everyone was displease, why…why, he wouldn't be able to live it down! It would be a burden to his heart. He would feel guilty about it. Therefore, he was left with no choice. But, as we can see, Demyx was not going to give up so easily. There _had_ to be another way…

"But…but…" he stuttered, looking down at their feet as he tried so desperately to think of another plan that would be good for _everyone_, including Demyx. Marluxia tilted his head to the side in inquirement.

"But what?" he simpered maliciously, his voice laced with false sympathy. The Melodious Nocturne slowly lifted his gaze up, biting his lip to keep him from exclaiming. He failed.

"I can't leave!" he whined loudly. He was anxious. He would be willing to beg on his knees so that he could stay. All because of…_him_. It would be a sad parting, but Demyx would have to keep from bursting into tears. But for now, he had to try to convince Marluxia to let him stay. Scoffing at his outburst, the brunette allowed his smirk to vanish. A mysterious glint in his eyes appeared and it seemed that a shadow covered the room.

"Why ever not?" he forcibly spoke through gritted teeth. Demyx frantically fiddled with his drawstrings of his cloak.

"Because!" he managed the weak response. Marluxia rolled his eyes at the _stupid_ Nobody. What a complete idiot. This had to be the most stupid, pathetic Nobody in the Organization. Couldn't he see that _that_ was why he was getting rid of him in the first place? He needed strong members to watch over Naminè. Not wimps like this excuse for a man who was letting out a fresh river of tears. Sneering down at the nineteen year old, Marluxia spoke.

"I am the leader of this castle, and it is in my duty to determine whether or not you stay here. Xemnas may be the leader of the Organization, and he may have granted a few members to accompany Castle Oblivion, but according to our records, you are of no help. Therefore, I am demanding you to leave at once," Marluxia snapped sharply, causing the dirty-blonde haired man to flinch. He was so _vulnerable_, wasn't he? Such a worthless Nobody. Marluxia hated him the moment he became Number IX. The problem was, if Marluxia didn't have the role as leader of the castle, Demyx, Axel and Zexion would be considered higher ranked than he.

The musician timidly looked down at his feet for what seemed to be the millionth time that day. He always despised being scolded. He hated to be in trouble. He couldn't help but feel bad. Sighing out loud, Demyx realized that he would not be able to beg the older man to allow him to stay. There was another way to persuade him, but Demyx wouldn't _dare_ cross that line. Pitifully, he lifted his ocean blue eyes to Marluxia's piercing clear-azure orbs.

"But…can't I at least say goodbye to Namine?" he quipped quietly. Marluxia scoffed again.

"No."

"Why not?" Demyx stuck out his chin stubbornly, but shrank back when Marluxia shot him his deathly glare.

How dare this childish man speak to him like that? How _dare_ he? Wasn't he aware that Marluxia could exile him to becoming a dusk whenever he wanted? He was lucky that he was allowing Demyx to just go back to The World That Never Was. His eyebrows furrowed and his frown deepened. Number Nine was crossing dangerous waters. No…more like walking across thin ice. Yes, that was more like it…

"You are not in the position to ask me that question," Marluxia muttered under his breath. He shuddered as he nearly whispered; he was angry. He almost laughed to himself when Demyx's large eyes widened and he gulped. How he loved it when people were afraid of him. That was possibly why he enjoyed torturing the witch so much. Shaking himself from his thoughts, he switched his attention to Demyx standing in front of him. It was hard to forget his fantasies of the girl who he deemed his little prisoner.

Well, he might as well give the other Nobody a reason for his banishment so that he could tell the Superior the cause. Yes, that would work out well…that way he wouldn't truly suspect Marluxia's plans to overthrow the Organization. He would have no idea. Suddenly, he let a small smile brighten his dark features.

"We are performing a new schedule, and you are in the way. In other words…you are the third wheel. Everyone says what a nuisance you are. That's all you are permitted to know," he told Demyx almost too cheerfully. He tried to make it sound less threatening, but it only caused Demyx's lower lip to tremble. Perfect. Now he'll want to leave. To add to the despair, Marluxia took a small step forward hesitantly. Slowly he raised his hands to rest on the younger man's shoulders. _Ugh_, he was _touching_ him…but he had to convince him even further.

"Everyone has come to me telling me how they've been annoyed with you lately. Especially Naminè…" he allowed his voice to trail off when he noticed Demyx shift uncomfortable and slightly twitched. Now his eyes were watering. It was working.

"She told me that it's been affecting her drawings. And we need her drawings, don't we?" he jeered, trying his best not to smirk. Instead he gently rubbed Demyx's shoulders, hoping that Number IX might be easily persuaded. He was. He let out a small sigh first and bowed his head. Marluxia held his breath as he waited for his answer.

"Fine. I'll leave at noon."

.x.x.x.

Letting out an exhausted, yet triumphant sigh, Zexion leaned back in his chair and rolled his shoulders. He had spent the whole morning trying his best to finish up the little prisoner's story. He hoped that she would enjoy it; after all, it was something that he volunteered to do. He supposed that she would appreciate it. Though as of late she was acting sort of strange, in a hormonal sense of speaking. Maybe she wasn't through with puberty. Did Nobodies even go through puberty? Hmm…an interesting notion that he would have to research on.

Zexion looked swiftly back down at the last page of the little black book on his desk. It was an old leather-bound journal that he saved from the time when he was a Somebody. He remembered that Ienzo enjoyed collecting old diaries that would only take up space later on. Luckily, Zexion discovered it in his desk drawer earlier when they moved to reside at Castle Oblivion. Now he was putting it to good use. He used up every single page of the journal. All he had to do now was read it out to Naminè; possibly even give it to her for safekeeping, if she wanted it.

The story itself was interesting. He was rather content as he wrote it. The protagonist was meant to be similar to Naminè herself. He had observed the girl's hobbies, little quirks, and personality over the past couple of days. And then over time, he began to write down notes about her as he watched her from day to day. But then that suspicion arose…How could the others even have a thought that Zexion admired Naminè for more than a friend? It was ridiculous! It was absurd.

Had he really done anything to make the others think such a thing? Sure, he asked to watch Naminè from time to time, but that was because she didn't want to be alone with Marluxia in the room. Care for her? Yes, he did. But admire her? No. Besides, when he was her company, she happened to draw more, and that was the goal of having her prisoner. He didn't really care about Sora's memory. As long as the girl wasn't harmed, he would do whatever Marluxia ordered them to, just so he wouldn't be turned into a dusk with Xemnas' permission. But…would he be willing to turn into a dusk for the little witch?

Maybe he would ponder about that later on…

For now, though, Zexion had to give the short novel to Naminè. Though, it would have to be the next day; his shift that day was cancelled because Axel, for some odd reason, wanted to spend more time with the memory witch. Curious. It was understandable, however, because Axel had not been talking to her that much. Also, since the day before, Zexion wasn't sure if he would be able to argue with the red headed inferno. That moment when he kissed him was so awkward; he could barely keep a conversation with the Wielder of Flames.

So…what could Zexion do meanwhile his wait? A whole day seemed to be forever in the castle. Maybe he could linger in the laboratory and help Vexen, but he had been uptight lately as he tried to finish his 'mastermind of all experiments.' Zexion rolled his eyes; the crazed scientist always exclaimed that statement. He was proven wrong every time. But maybe not this time…True, the nineteen year old was wondering what the experiment could be. Vexen never hid a secret from the castle about his experiments.

Zexion breathed in deeply and closed his eyes, only to open them again suddenly. The aroma of the ocean reached his senses. Interested, he arched an eyebrow as a portal appeared in sight with none other than the infamous Melodious Nocturne stepping out with worry and concern written on his features. His hand was at his mouth as he bit his index finger nervously. To add to that, he was shaking.

"Salutations. What can I do for you, Number IX?" Zexion properly addressed the young Nobody in front of his desk. Demyx raised his eyes to Zexion's gaze. The sea clashed with steel as they stared at each other for a long passing moment. The Cloaked Schemer sighed and broke visual contact.

"What's wrong, Demyx? You're never quiet for more than ten seconds," he drawled with dry humor. Startled by the remark of recognition of his behavior, Demyx shook himself and breathed out.

"I have issues, Zexy…" he murmured softly. Zexion sniffed once.

"I have noticed this as of late."

Demyx tilted his head to the side and furrowed his eyebrows, but quickly forgot the remark. Instead he grabbed a nearby chair and dragged it to the front of Zexion's desk. He seated himself in the wooden furniture and looked ahead at the slate-haired Nobody. He shut his bright blue eyes and let in a deep breath through his mouth and letting it out through his nostrils.

"Is it okay if I talk to you?" he asked as he opened his eyes and leaned forward. Zexion closed the small novel and shoved it into a drawer, causing a curious look from the water-loving Nobody. The bookworm rested his elbow on the desk and scratched his chin, wondering what ever on earth could make Demyx come and talk to him. Demyx always seemed afraid to piss him off, but he wasn't moody at all. He just didn't like people pestering him about useless things. But this time it must have been serious.

"Of course you can talk to me," he replied after a long moment. Demyx brightened up immediately before letting a soft smile appear on his face. But then anguish overcame him again.

"I have a problem…" he paused, gazing into his lap with his mouth ajar, "with…someone."

"Who is it?" the other one inquired. The ninth member of the Organization rubbed his chin.

"Well, first of all, I'm leaving the castle," before Zexion could ask why, Demyx continued: "Marluxia is making me go because I'm a 'burden' to the members here." He sadly sighed and looked back up at the stern, seemingly emotionless man. Worry would be a way to describe Zexion's expression. No, he wasn't really worried about his problem, but he was concerned about why Demyx was so quiet. He was never quiet, unless something extremely serious was about to turn up. And he being transported to the World That Never Was wasn't that serious. No…it was much more than that.

"Could you tell me the true issue?" Zexion demanded bluntly. Stunned by his remark, Demyx started before softening. The master of illusions never had seen this young man so depressed.

"I don't want to leave," he whispered to him. Confused, the illusionist blinked.

"Why don't you want to leave?"

"I'm in love."

Zexion nearly choked out a snort, but he withheld the mordant remark that would crush the other one's dreams. He _would _have told him that he couldn't be in love because he was immature and didn't have a heart, but the image of Naminè scolding him on being more sensitive to people's feelings entered his mind. On second thought, maybe he should try to listen instead of blocking out others' opinions.

"Who is the significant other, may I ask?" he cleared his throat as he questioned. Nervously, Demyx bit his lip and stared down into his lap. It was apparent that the young Nobody was having trouble explaining who it was. Zexion had a notion from what the witch told him.

"It is Axel?" Zexion guessed with a monotone voice. Demyx, shocked that he knew, gaped at him with widened orbs. Question was in his eyes as he wondered how on earth Zexion of all people guessed that it was Axel and actually got it right. Zexion didn't actually noticed his infatuation; the young witch had explained to him the day before that Demyx would be happy to hear that he and the inferno were not having an affair. Zexion nearly shuddered at that disgusting thought.

"How do you know?" Demyx answered with another question. Zexion shrugged simply.

"Naminè informed me of this. She told me that you were rather upset by seeing Axel and myself…well, you already know this…" Zexion trailed off that thought. "So I thought about it. You either had admiration for me or Axel, but I didn't think it was even possible for it to be me. So the thought of Axel arose in my mind, and I found out that you and he enjoy spending time with each other. But since you are so secretive about it, it's probable that he is unaware of your attraction towards him. And since Marluxia is making you leave, he has probably forbid you to speak to Naminè so that she wouldn't know of the change. If she did, she would, believe me, be upset because she actually prefers spending time with you. Because of this issue, you are left with the choice of speaking with me, Axel himself, Larxene, Lexaeus or Vexen, and you would rather choose me because you know that I watch the girl a lot. Am I correct?"

Demyx did nothing but stare. After a moment of silence, he answered.

"Yes." Zexion nodded in accomplishment. True, he was a very observant Nobody. But he would not have known this without the witch's help. Naminè was fond of the clumsy Melodious Nocturne. Maybe he should try to help in however way he could…

"What should I do?" Demyx asked in desperation. Zexion rubbed his chin as he thought of an idea.

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(A/N): Yeah, not much. I'm sorry...forgive me. D: I hope I clarified the tension between Demyx and Zexion. If not, I can always go back and edit it.

Next Chapter: Demyx lets Axel knows how he feels.


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